Molly Cummings Minot Cook died peacefully in her sleep on April 2 in her Greenwich home. She was 102.

Mrs. Cook was born August 5, 1917 in Seattle, Wash. to Wilbur and Marian Cummings. She moved with her parents to Greenwich, Conn. when World War I was over. She attended Greenwich Academy, Rosemary Hall and Vassar College.

As a young woman, Mrs. Cook was a passionate equestrian, competing in many horse shows. She was a member of the Fairfield Westchester Hounds. Her mother also took her under her wing (literally), encouraging her to become a pilot. Marian Engle Cummings was the first woman to receive a commercial pilot license in the U.S. Mrs. Cook obtained her pilot license at the age of 18 and flew her own plane in many intercollegiate air meets. She loved to stunt fly in Armonk, N.Y., thrilling the spectators who came to watch at the airport on Sundays. 

In 1939, she married William Amory Gardner Minot. When World War II started, Mr. Minot was commissioned as an ensign in the U.S. Navy, and his wife joined the Civil Air Patrol in Westchester County, N.Y., where she was commissioned a second lieutenant. She taught aerial navigation and communications to the enlisted Air Corps cadets for preparation for active duty. She rose to the rank of captain by the end of the war.

Additionally, she was a Red Cross nurse’s aide in the Greenwich Hospital, before and during World War II. She was among the first group of women to train for this job in the U.S. Her brother, Wilbur (Bill) L. Cummings, Jr., was a Navy pilot who was the first serviceman from Greenwich to die in the war.

After the war, she and her husband managed the Coca Cola Bottling Company in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. Mr. Minot went on to work for the government service, requiring a move to Paris, France, where he was head of foreign aid to France. Upon returning to the U.S., Mr. Minot became the president and owner of Canada Dry of Fairfield County, Conn. During this time, Mrs. Cook attended classes at the New York School of Interior Design and the New York School of Modern Photography, two careers she actively pursued throughout her lifetime.

Mr. Minot died in 1963. Mrs. Cook took over management of Canada Dry until 1968. She remarried in 1965 to Hobart Amory Hare Cook.

Mrs. Cook was a passionate gardener and conservationist. In May 2015, the Garden Club of American recognized her 65 years of service as an exemplary member.

Mrs. Cook and her husband enjoyed their home in Edgartown, the ideal place to pursue their mutual love of sailing. Both were active members of the Edgartown Yacht Club (EYC). Mrs. Cook served as the secretary of the club for nine years.

Mrs. Cook also attended celestial navigation courses at the Hayden Planetarium and became a celestial navigator, a vital talent on the couple’s long sailing voyages. Mr. Cook passed away in 1983. In his memory, Mrs. Cook created the Hobart A.H. Cook Trophy at the EYC, which is awarded to the Academy sailing yacht with the best corrected time for the ‘Round-the-Island Race.

After Mr. Cook’s death, she took over management of the family cattle ranch in Montana, where she enjoyed many summers horseback riding with her family. She also attended the Isabel O’Neil School of Art of the Painted Finish in New York city, and became an instructor there.

Mrs. Cook is predeceased by her eldest child, Marian Cummings Minot. She is survived by her son, Winthrop Gardner Minot, and three granddaughters.

A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to the Greenwich Garden Club Conservation Scholarship Fund: Greenwich Garden Club., P.O. Box 4896, Greenwich, CT, 06831, or the Greenwich Land Trust: 370 Round Hill Rd, Greenwich, CT 06831.