Junius N Cooley

On June 5, 2016, of Oakton, VA. Beloved husband of Bettie Cooley; devoted father of Antoinette Winchester, Valerie Cooley-Elliott and Gregory Smith. Also survived by eight grandchildren and a host of other relatives and friends. Visitation Saturday, June 11 at 11am until time of service at 12:00pm at McLean Bible Church, 8925 Leesburg Pk., Vienna, VA. Interment to follow at 3:00pm at National Memorial Park, Falls Church, VA.

From the moment he was born on May 7th, 1928 to the moment he passed away on June 5th, 2016, Junius Nelson Cooley was a fierce protector, a faithful family leader, and a beloved friend who touched countless lives and brought joy to everyone he knew. Deeply loved and highly respected, Mr. Cooley’s powerful presence, his inexhaustible humor and his generous heart will be sorely missed, forever cherished and always remembered.

Born of courageous spirit and dauntless determination, Junius had to leave school at an early age to help support his family after the tragic and untimely death of his father, Henry Cooley. One of 14 children, Junius worked tirelessly on various farms, and as a mechanic, managing daily duties and performing a countless list of other necessary tasks -- never once wavering, never once complaining and thus, developing a legacy of hard-fought ambition and a work-ethic second to none.

In 1952, Junius married Bettie Ingram, a beautiful young school teacher who graduated from Winston Salem University, and the couple moved from Goochland, VA to Baltimore, MD before finally settling in Northern Virginia, where their family home remains. What began as a flicker of young love burned steadily into a lifelong, eternal flame. June 7th, 2016, marked their 64th wedding anniversary, which underscores the power of their union and reminds us that such undying love will always remain.

After arriving in Northern Virginia, and in pursuit of his lifelong passion for cars, Junius began working at Bob Peck Chevrolet in Arlington, VA, as a master detailer and mechanic. Always determined and forever focused on the bigger, brighter picture, he worked tirelessly, night and day, to eventually launch his own trash-hauling business, Cooley’s Trash Removal Service, which quickly became the pioneer African-American business in Northern Virginia. Though the company’s expansion was rapid and it was unanimously regarded as the best in the business, Mr. Cooley still worked hard at being a constant source of strength and inspiration to other African-American trash-hauling businesses in the area, such as Gordon’s Refuse Removal, Bryant’s Container Service, Fitzhugh’s Trash service just to name a few, always encouraging collaboration over competition and mutual respect over selfish promotion; a rare and wonderful trait in today’s harsh business climate. Though the company changed names over the years, its dramatic ascent continued unabated, and from 1973 to 2008, J.N. Cooley Refuse Removal Inc., was listed as the largest minority-owned business in Northern Virginia.

Such unprecedented success might have been considered rare by others, but the Cooley couple, ever humble and fiercely determined, eagerly embraced it as a collective effort and a family affair. His wife Bettie, one of the first black school teachers in Fairfax County and a highly-respected entrepreneur in her own right, also worked tirelessly and selflessly to help her husband run the business, which they ran out of their McLean home and then moved their offices to Oakton, VA.

For Bettie and Junius Cooley, whose own love was born out of Christian love, the selfless act of helping others was of the utmost importance (they often helped those facing hard times with money from their own pocket and once even co-signed a loan for a struggling employee who desperately needed a car.) It was this kind of pure and selfless love that sprang from their own abiding love of God; it was this love that stoked the fire in their souls. Junius Cooley found joy in life’s simple pleasures, and his interests were wide and diverse. Affectionately and respectfully called “Cooley”, anyone who knew him knew that he enjoyed playing cards, watching westerns and game shows, working on cars, spending time with his family and taking care of his 91-acre farm in Catlett, VA which they had until July 2014.

He was blessed with a bountiful, beautiful family and an inexhaustible host of close friends. He leaves behind to cherish his memory, his loving wife of 64 years, Bettie; three children, Antoinette Winchester (Eddie) of Centreville, VA, Gregory Smith (Sophronia) of Callo, VA and Valerie Cooley-Elliott (Marvin) of Sterling, VA; and eight grandsons and one granddaughter, Eddie Timothy Winchester, Jr. (Marissa Alfonso Winchester), Joshua Matthew Winchester, Daniel Paul Winchester, David Aaron Cooley, Gabriel Sweet Smith, Marvin Johnathan Elliott, Asa Asher Smith and Michael Junius Elliott. He was preceded in death by eleven siblings and has two surviving siblings, Roland Cooley (Tina Cooley) and Bobby Cooley. Junius also leaves behind a host of nieces and nephews, cousins and other friends and relatives.

Though we will miss him deeply -- our father, our grandfather, our wise leader, and our faithful friend – we must seek comfort in the glorious knowledge that, “to be absent in the body is to be present in the Lord. (II Corinthians 5:6-8). To Junius Cooley, we bid a fond and loving farewell, but only for now, we will see you again.

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; they rod and they staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4

Written by Kristin Clark Taylor