Lawrence E Cooper

Lawrence was our Dad, Grandpa, Great Grandfather, Uncle, Special Brother, and Friend. Dad was born in May 1928 in Vancouver, Washington to Lawrence Arthur Cooper and Rose Marie Fellner Cooper. He was predeceased by his wife of 64 years, Carol Mae Mitchell Cooper who died in 2012.

He had many stories of his childhood which encompassed the Depression and WWII years. Dad was an only child. He and his parents lived with extended family during his early years, and he became especially close with his paternal grandparents, Bapa and Bama (Jamie Arthur Cooper and Clara Marie Reinhard Cooper). In fact, Dad and Bapa shared a May 31st birthday. Bapa worked for the SP&S (Spokane Portland & Seattle) Railroad, and he and Dad would walk downtown to the roundhouse where Dad was allowed to sit in the train engineer’s seat and even pull the switching levers on occasion. On these walks, they would also stop at a plant nursery to admire the flowers. While Dad did not become a gardener, he had a great appreciation for the beauty of flowers, especially rhododendrons and irises.

Some of his favorite childhood stories include how proud he was of being one of two boys who could throw a baseball completely over the roof of his grade school, and also that he was able to pedal his bike (which was missing a pedal) up the steep Mill Plain hill faster than the local city trucks. Dad lived near Pearson Airfield in Vancouver, and during WWII they sponsored citizen aircraft spotter training. Dad was too young to officially participate but he still learned all the airplane types and profiles. He also rode his Schwinn bike all over Vancouver, including to his jobs picking Marshall strawberries, and working on a garlic and lettuce farm in his early teens.

When WWII started, Vancouver became a shipbuilding hub, and the town changed radically, growing from 18,000 to closer to 100,000 with all the shipyard workers. Because of his exceptional drumming skills, Dad was recruited into the shipyard band at age 15, before he was legally allowed to be employed. Even so, he worked at the shipyards after school and summers, working his way up to be a supply runner, outfitting ships. He was proud of the ships he helped ready for launch.

Dad played in his high school band where he was the lead snare drummer. This is where he met Carol, our Mom, in his senior year. He tells of the band door opening, and he looked up to see a beautiful girl enter, wearing a blue embroidered blouse and a smile. Mom, a cello player, joined band that year rather than orchestra, and played tympani. They talked of counting “rest” measures together as they locked eyes across the band room. A prom date that spring began a romance that continued after their high school graduation in 1946. That Fall, Dad went to WSU in Pullman and Mom went to Linfield College in McMinnville, OR. Letters flew back and forth (Dad’s studies “suffered”, he noted), and Dad decided to transfer the next year to Linfield to court Mom. They married a year later – August 7, 1948 – and moved back to Pullman where Dad completed his studies in social work. Further studies at the University of Washington towards a Masters degree led them to Seattle where they welcomed their first child, Cathy, in 1951. Career moves followed to Coeur d’Alene, Vancouver (where Connie was born in 1954), Longview (where Steve was born in 1958), Kelso, and then to Colfax, where the family welcomed Baby Cindy in 1960.

Family Life was important to Dad and Mom. Some of the family memories of those years include Sunday drives to “go exploring” nearby areas (often ending with ice cream cones!), and simple things like being read bedtime stories. Cathy and Connie recall Friday nights in Colfax, eating popcorn and drinking grape juice with Dad while watching The Flintstones. Mom worked on Friday nights at The Daily Bulletin. After a move to Olympia, Dad enjoyed family time watching The Beatles on Ed Sullivan in 1964, Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969, and many other TV programs. Saturdays were always workdays around the house where he would use his “fix-it” skills to keep things working, sometimes well past their life. He also loved his cars: from a 1951 Chrysler to one of the first Toyotas in Olympia (back when Toyota owners would wave at each other on the road!). Many of his cars were passed down to his kids.

As a county administrator, Dad oversaw the State social welfare programs in Whitman County. He excelled as an administrator which led to a move in 1963 to Olympia to the Headquarters office, where he enjoyed an amazing view out his 7th floor office of Budd Inlet and the mothball US Navy fleet in the ‘70s.

Dad and Mom bought the house where they, and then he, ultimately lived for these past 59 years. He became Administrator of Adult Programs in what is now Social and Health Services, implementing the beginnings of the food stamp program in Washington, and helping create new models for the foster care program. Dad retired in 1982 and enjoyed his many retirement years with road trips with Mom in their RV, visiting national parks and historical sites connected to the Lewis and Clark expedition. They explored new cities while Mom attended church conferences. Dad was an avid reader. As his eyesight failed, he maintained his love of reading through the Talking Books service provided by Washington Center for the Blind.

Music brought Mom and Dad together and remained an important aspect of their lives, listening to records, attending concerts, and supporting their local orchestras. They passed this love of music on to their children, who have continued this musical connection in their own lives.

Christian faith was a foundational aspect of Dad’s life. As a child, Sundays were spent visiting his aunts and playing with cousins. Though he did not grow up attending church, after he met Mom, Dad began attending church regularly with her, and that began a lifetime commitment to Christian life. They were active participants in their church in each town in which they lived. Dad sang in the choir, attended Bible study, and later taught adult Bible study, as well as becoming a lay leader. He was active on various church committees as part of his commitment to the Church and to the idea of service. His faith was quiet and strong, and suffused his life.

Dad is survived by his 4 children (Cathy, Connie, Steve, and Cindy), 10 grandchildren (Hollie, Adam, Rose, Tony, Ben, Jamie, Lauren, Brian, Zac, and Claire) 7 great grandchildren (Mackenzie, Baylee, Sal, Rheya, Lilli, Abby, and Teddy), his sister-in-law Rosalee Johnson, and extended family. A graveside service was held June 14, 2022 at Mills & Mills Cemetery in Tumwater where he is buried next to Carol.

Rest in Peace, Dad.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.millsandmillsfunerals.com for the Cooper family.