Arleen Crooks came to Olympia with her family in 1958. The wife of a forester and mother of two, my grandmother dedicated her life to making her adopted home a better place.
Growing Up in the Great Depression
Arleen Marie Webb was born May 3, 1923, to William John Webb (1895-1963) and Nancy Hamilton Webb (1900-1980) in Canfield, Ohio. She had two brothers, Marshall (1921-1986) and Wayne (1925-2000). Her father was a World War I veteran and her mother a retired teacher. Arleen credited her mother for giving her a lifelong love for education and history.
The Great Depression made times tough. The family moved to Meadville, Pennsylvania. Arleen graduated from Meadville High School in 1942. She went on to graduate from Allegheny College (a private college in Meadville) and Edinboro Teachers College.
Her first job was teaching English and history at Meadville High School. “The hardest part of the job,” she later recalled, “was going into the faculty rooms – I’d had most of the faculty members as teachers when I went to school and I felt self-conscious!”
From World War II to the Forest Service
On June 29, 1945, Arleen married Andrew “Andy” Ellsworth Crooks (1923-1990) in Meadville. They had met when he was an Allegheny College freshman working at the A&P Grocery while she was a high school senior. Andy soon enlisted in the army medical corps, serving in North Africa and Italy and was on leave when they got married.
After serving as surgical assistant and critical care ward manager during the war, Andy gave up his dream of being a doctor. Remembering his time in the Civilian Conservation Corps, he decided to become a forester. He loved nature, as did Arleen. He graduated from Pennsylvania State University in 1951. The school was so crowded with fellow veterans on the GI Bill, the couple lived in a trailer. Arleen worked as a clerk at the school.
Andy joined the U.S. Forest Service. His first assignment was to Marblemount in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest in Washington.
The Crook Family Moves to Olympia
Coming from western Pennsylvania, Marblemount must have felt on the edge of the wilderness. Andy a timber management assistant, while Arleen taught history for a year at nearby Concrete High School. They welcomed son Marc in 1953.
In 1955, the family moved to Sisters, Oregon, where Andy worked in timber management at Deschutes National Forest. Drew Crooks – my father – was born in 1956. Arleen was always proud of her boys.
Two years later, Andy received an offer to work as a timber manager at the Olympic National Forest headquarters. The job was a promotion and the town offered better educational opportunities for their kids. So, they packed up their car Memorial Day weekend and drove up to Olympia.
Arleen Crooks Finds Community in Olympia, Founds Meals on Wheels
While Arleen occasionally substituted for the Olympia School District, the self-described housewife – who was a great cook – dedicated most of her time to caring for her family and community. She never had much money, but was always generous.
Arleen loved kids. A dedicated mother, she was active with the Madison Elementary School PTA and Cub Scouts. Andy was a Boy Scout commissioner for many years and taught children skills like canoeing.
The family joined Westminster Presbyterian Church, starting attending the first Sunday after they moved. A longtime Sunday School teacher, Arleen also served as an elder. She was a member of the Elizabeth Circle and honorary lifetime member of the Woman’s Association. Arleen represented her church at Associated Ministries, an organization of Olympia churches that coordinated community projects. She also served on Westminster’s Christian Action Committee.
It was through her church that Arleen became active in working for her community’s welfare. She served on the Senior Center Board, Election Board and helped found Meals on Wheels. Arleen also taught English classes for Southeast Asian refugees.
Founding the Thurston County Food Bank
Perhaps the project closest to Arleen’s heart was the Thurston County Food Bank. When a group of churches and other community organizations banded together in 1972 to form Neighbors in Need in Thurston County, Arleen represented Westminster.
First located in the basement of First Christian Church downtown, the food bank’s early days were hard ones. Low donations meant they could only give very limited amounts of food to those in need. She and other volunteers had to struggle against ideas about who was “worthy” of help – and who wasn’t – from both the public and a handful of volunteers. Arleen didn’t want to scrutinize everyone coming in, she wanted the Food Bank to be welcoming.
Arleen Crook’s Legacy in Olympia
As Arleen’s health declined, she remained as active as she could. When she had difficulty getting out of the house, she would call other home-bound members of her church to cheer them up. Arleen passed away on November 4, 1990. Andy passed away 22 days later from a heart attack.
In a tribute published shortly after Arleen’s death, neighbor Maxine White praised her as a: “terrific friend and always for other people. I never heard her say a mean word about anyone.” She was able to get along with people very different from her.
I was born nearly a year after both my grandparents’ passing. When I was a teenager, I added “Arleen” as a middle name to honor her. Once a month her two sons, their wives, three grandchildren, granddaughter-in-law, and two great-grandchildren help pack school lunches for the Thurston County Food Bank. I like to think that her legacy of family, faith and service live on in us and in the groups that she helped found and nurture.
