Clara B Cooper

Clara Belle Cooper, age 93, of Banning, California, passed away peacefully on November 24, 2025. She was born on June 9, 1932, in Cuero, Texas, to Prince Brown and Clara Brown. In 1949, she married the love of her life, Robert A. Cooper Jr. They enjoyed 40 years of marriage prior to his death in 1989.

Clara will be remembered for her kind and beautiful soul, her grace and her wisdom. She was a member of The Nostalgia Singers for over 20 years, she loved to sing, and she loved to play the piano. She was a great resource for family history and always enjoyed sharing interesting and colorful stories about the past. Over the years, Clara was a member of Mt. Bethel Baptist Church in Cuero, Texas, St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in San Antonio, Texas, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Pomona CA, and St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Rialto, CA. During her extensive church life, she was very active as a Sunday School teacher, church pianist, member of the Daughters of the King, the St. Paul’s Players group and the St. Paul’s choir, she served as an acolyte and crucifer, and she served on the Altar Guild for many, many years. Clara was also a volunteer with the March of Dimes, Walk for Hunger and Volunteers of America. She was employed for many years as a noon-aide with the Pomona Unified School District and later with The Rialto Unified School District. She was also an apartment manager in Claremont, CA, for 15 years.

In addition to her husband and parents, Clara was predeceased by her sisters, Julia Scurlock and Sarah Robinson and her brothers, Dakota Brown and Johnny Brown. She is survived by her five children and their spouses, Arie Jeter, Howard and Naomi Caldwell, Rev. Robert and Rosemary Cooper, Stephen and Diane Cooper and Sheryl Guidry, her sister, Dorothy Taylor, her brother-in-law and sisters-in-law, Leon and Carol Brookens, Vanessa Kim Cooper, Naomi Miller and Ernestine Washington, her 11 grandchildren and their spouses, her 20 great and 2 great-great -grandchildren (who she lovingly referred to all of them as her “Rosebuds”), and a host of cousins, nieces, nephews and dear friends.

A service to celebrate her amazing life will be held at 11:00 am on Thursday, December 18, 2025, at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Rialto, CA. The repast will be held in the church’s Parish Hall following the service. A Graveside Service will be held at 9:30 am on Friday, December 19, 2025, at the Riverside National Cemetery.

Here is the Zoom invitation with the link that allows people to join the service.

ST PETER'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: ST PETER'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH's Zoom Meeting

Time: Dec 18, 2025 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

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https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7941585818?omn=81195190347

Meeting ID: 794 158 5818

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