Rural Missouri - July 2013 - (Page 27)

photo courtesy of Theodosia Marina-Resort Above left: Five generations of the Cook family have called Theodosia home. Top row, from left, Melanie, Bret, Ben and Bill; center row, LaTasha, Kentlee and Vicky; bottom row, Mitchell, Chase and Nadine. Above right: Local fishing guide Bob Bochert lips a largemouth bass from the waters of Bull Shoals Lake. He and his wife, Shirley, retired to the lake about 13 years ago, and he enjoys fishing for bass, crappie and walleye. Below left: While vacationing at the resort, 14-year-old Brooklynn Fertig, left, plays in the swim ing pool with her 9-year-old cousin, Hunter Russell. Below right: After a day on the water, enjoy a meal at Cookie’s, where the specialties include fried chicken. m his wife, Nadine, became partners in the business when they married in 1958. “Back in those days, everybody had an outboard, carried them in the trunk of the car. So they’d bring their motor and rent a boat from you for $2.50 a day.” As the business grew, so too did the diversity of the clientele. No longer were they catering to solitary fishermen. Instead, entire families began vacationing during the summer, visiting to enjoy other lake activities. “It’s not as much a fishing lake anymore. This is a boating lake,” says Bret Cook, one of Bill’s two sons who joined the family operation in the 1980s. “When I was a kid, our spring and fall were the business. Now, June, July and August are the big months.” To accommodate guests, the Theodosia Marina-Resort offers a wide array of lodging choices, from motelstyle rooms and an RV park to quaint cottages and the upscale Otter Creek Lodge, which boasts four bedrooms, two whirlpool tubs, a stone fireplace and a gorgeous lake view. All guests have access to the resort’s swimming pool and tennis and basketball courts. Ben Cook, Bill’s other son, oversees the family’s sales and service department, which moved off-site following a flood in 2008. Back on the water, the marina provides services ranging from boat rentals and storage to a complete bait and tackle shop. More than 250 boats may be at the marina at one time. A new dock is being constructed this summer to cater to the boats that continue to get larger. The biggest gathering spot, however, is the resort’s restaurant. While L.B. was required under his concessionaire’s agreement to build an eatery, it didn’t require him to run it. Operating a restaurant was too much like owning a dry goods store, so for many years, he leased it out to others. In the 1980s, Bill decided to bring all aspects of the resort under family management. They renamed the restaurant, “Cookie’s,” which was L.B.’s nickname. Most days, you’ll find Melanie Cook, Bret’s wife, overseeing a staff that serves three meals a day during the peak summertime season. Vacationers and locals alike enjoy the wide array of homemade favorites, including fried chicken, country-fried steak and the Friday night special, prime rib. Also popular are the wide assortment of made-from-scratch desserts, including pies, cakes and cheesecake. Melanie says the family always looks for ways to improve the guest experience. For example, the resort added free Wi-Fi service a few years ago, and the pool area was recently renovated. She says plans are in the works for updating the motel and cottages with more of the modern conveniences travelers have come to expect. “This is a super lake, one of Missouri’s hidden treasures,” says Larry Fuller of St. Louis. “And here at the resort, you’ve got it all. Hotel, restaurant, marina — and you can’t meet nicer people.” Larry and his wife, Betty, began coming to Theodosia in the 1960s for fishing and family vacations, and today, they still visit five or six times a year. Larry enjoys bass fishing, and the JULY 2013 marina has hosted his union’s fishing tournament for many years. “Every year, I ask the guys where they want to go, and they always want to come here. It’s just so peaceful and quiet.” Today, Bret and Melanie’s son and daughter-in-law, Mitchell and LaTasha, are the fourth generation of the Cook family to work at the resort. The young couple has full-time jobs elsewhere, but they pitch in during the summer and on weekends. Their daughter, 12-month-old Kentlee, represents the fifth generation to call Theodosia home. L.B. passed away in 2002, but his legacy is sure to last well into the 21st century. “Being in business all his life, Dad’s big lesson was take care of your customers and they’ll take care of you,” Bill says. “That’s been our motto around here, and it’s worked out pretty well.” To learn more about the Theodosia Marina-Resort, call 417-273-4444 or visit www.tmrbullshoals.net. 27 http://www.tmrbullshoals.net

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - July 2013

Rural Missouri - July 2013
Contents
Comments
Columns
That old-time religion
Natural nest
Long-distance lead
Outdoors
Out of the Way Eats
Hearth and Home
Keep it cool
On the banks of Bull Shoals
Retro renovations
Infamous ancestry
Around Missouri
Marketplace
Neighbors
Just4Kids

Rural Missouri - July 2013