Obituary of Benjamin Lee Cooke
Obituary for Benjamin Lee Cooke
With broken hearts, we announce the unexpected passing of Benjamin Lee Cooke, 44, on August 18, 2025. A gently radiant soul, Ben left this world too early—while leaving an indelible mark on everyone who had the gift of knowing and loving him.
Born on June 23, 1981, in Columbus, North Carolina, Ben grew up with a deeply curious mind, a wide-open heart, and an extraordinary connection to the natural world. As a child, he once “borrowed” (and safely returned) baby alligators from a nearby sanctuary to better understand them—a story that foreshadowed his lifelong enchantment with the mysteries of the living world and his tender care for all creatures, great and small.
Ben attended both the Hyde School and Morse High School in Bath, Maine, graduating from Morse in 2002. He went on to study at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he received his degree in 2007 and began weaving together his gifts in visual art, movement, music, and his keen sense of the spiritual dimension in nature into a singular, boundary-breaking artistic vision.
As a talented videographer, photographer, and live visual digital artist known as VJ SilentStream, Ben created breathtaking multimedia experiences for live performances and events. His original videos—featuring soulful beats, ethereal nature footage, mesmerizing digital art, and awe-inspiring contact juggling—were performed live to delighted audiences at festivals and venues across the country. His work can also be found on social media and platforms like Vimeo and SoundCloud, where it continues to inspire.
A gifted mover, Ben’s love for skateboarding and footbag in his youth grew into a lifelong passion for contact juggling, a meditative art form in which he excelled. His gravity-defying, hypnotic choreography—using glowing orbs to conjure illusion and flow—left people spellbound. At the time of his death, Ben was collaborating with engineers in Austria to develop an innovative LED contact juggling ball, with a dream of making it widely available and affordable for others in the community he cherished.
In recent years, Ben had turned his immense creativity toward the earth itself. A devoted student of permaculture and ecological restoration, he immersed himself in courses and community projects focused on native plants, biodiversity, and sustainability. He could often be found hand-feeding squirrels and chipmunks, building swales for woodchucks in his backyard, or watching ferns unfold in nature preserves. He loved the scurry of salamanders as much as the sight of beavers at work building their dams.
He volunteered often—particularly at Mt. Joy Orchard in Portland, Maine, a free-to-pick public orchard and pollinator haven—and dreamed of one day cultivating a thriving, regenerative sanctuary of his own.
Whether in the wild woods or coastlines of New England, the highlands of North Carolina, or the mountains and jungles of Costa Rica and Peru, Ben found home in nature and in the people who loved him. His van, expertly outfitted, became his portable sanctuary—a vehicle for adventure, healing, and deep connection, both with people and the land.
Ben was predeceased by his grandparents, Newell Hale, Jacqueline Murray, and Violet and Richard Cooke, by his uncle Colin Cooke, as well as by his beloved mother, Leslie Hale Cooke, and his father, Peter Cooke, both of whom he missed profoundly. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Fiona and Alex Hall, of East Thetford, VT; his grandmother, Betty Hale, of Pomfret Center, CT; his step-mother, Sarah Cooke of Lyme, NH; his aunts and uncles: Inglis and John Sellick of Tryon, NC; Lee Hale and Alan Fitch of Portland, OR; Laurence and Jane Hale of Pomfret Center, CT; and Alison Shackleton of London, England; his nieces, Emmy and Josie Hall; and his cousins: Ashley and Ben Mannell; Alec Eman; Helen, Newell, and Peter Hale; Holly Shackleton and Rich Bennet; Harry and Blanche Shackleton; Cheryl and Rich Williams; Andrew and Katie Cooke; Clementine, Chloe, and Clara Mannell; Frank, Iris and Jude Shackleton; Violet and Thea Shackleton; Betsy and Olivia Williams; and Austin Cooke; and a step-sister, Kristen Ring. He also leaves behind countless dear friends, chosen family, and creative collaborators, all of whom are also deeply grieving his loss.
To know Ben was to be welcomed into a circle of quietly fierce and loyal love. He gave of himself generously—appearing in driveways for surprise visits that often turned into days-long stays, sharing his warm smile, impassioned conversations, and his quiet and attentive presence. Ben made beauty from pain, turned solitude into spiritual exploration, and transformed grief into love in action.
A graveside service will be held on Sunday, August 24 at 2:00 p.m. in the burial ground of Christ Episcopal Church in Pomfret, CT, where Ben will be laid to rest beside his mother and grandfather. A reception will follow at the nearby family homestead. All who loved Ben are welcome. A celebration of his life in Bath, Maine will be held on Saturday, September 13, with details to be announced.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be to the following organizations that were important to Ben: The Brunswick Topsham Landtrust (https://www.btlt.org/donation/), The Gathering Place in Brunswick (https://brunswickgatheringplace.org/contribute/), or The Connecticut Audubon Society at Pomfret (https://www.ctaudubon.org/donate/).
Ben's life was a shining constellation of movement, art, love, awe, and deep listening—to people, to nature, and to the deep ache of the world. We’re grateful for the gentle, intentional healing that he brought to the people and places that mattered to him most. He leaves behind not just memories, but a legacy of beauty and connection that will continue to reverberate in many hearts for years to come. We hope he knows how very loved he was—and still is. Share a memory at Smithandwalkerfh.com