It is with heavy hearts we announce the death of William W. Cooper, Jr. who passed away peacefully at home May 11, 2023 at the age of 83. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at Heartland Funeral Home from 6:00pm – 8:00pm. Service will Wednesday, May,17, 2023 at Santa Anna United Methodist Church at 1:00pm with interment to follow at Fairview Cemetery in Grosvenor under the direction of Heartland Funeral Home in Early.
Bill was born on November 27, 1939 at Heights Hospital in Houston, Texas.
He attended Aldine High School and Reagan High School. He graduated from Reagan High School in 1958. He later attended Houston Community College to take various courses in mathematics to further is career.
He met his future wife, Gracie DeCarlo, in 9th grade, but didn’t start dating until 1958. Bill and Gracie married August 7, 1959 at Fulbright United Methodist Church, in Houston, where they would raise their 3 daughters to follow Christ.
Bill started working at Cameron Iron Works in 1958. Although the company was purchased by other companies over the years of his employment, he continued to work until his retirement in 1999 from Wyman Gordan. He was called out of retirement on several occasions act as a consultant for Wyman Gordan in Massachusetts.
Bill was a lifelong member of the Methodist Church. He was an active in every church of which he was a member:
Fulbright UMC (Houston) where he was the Youth Director for a number of years until the church closed; At Beneke UMC (Houston) he taught Adult Sunday school and was one of the Directors of the Weekly Food Pantry; At Bangs UMC (Bangs) he taught Adult Sunday School; and at Santa Anna UMC (Santa Anna) he was an active member until his health no longer allowed.
Bill was devoted to studying the Bible. He loved to learn & share God’s Word. He spent every morning reading his devotional, studying bible verses and praying. His prayer list was often multiple pages long and he would pray for each person individually. His love for Jesus could not be contained!
He was an active member of The Gideons International in Brownwood. He enjoyed distributing Bibles at elementary schools and during Christmas at TDCJ-Havins Unit. He also volunteered at the Brownwood Salvation Army. He enjoyed fellowship with others during the community lunches.
Bill learned to fish at a very young age. When he wasn’t working or spending time with is family, he was fishing! He was also an avid coin collector. Bill’s coin collecting began as a young boy when he started collecting dimes. That coin collecting expanded to starting a coin club in Brownwood where he would attend coin shows in the region, as well as host shows.
In the past 8 years, the joy in his eyes has been attributed to his great granddaughter, Lilly Grace. From Santa Claus to Pumpkin patch visits, and playing on the floor, Bill enjoyed every minute spent with his Lilly.
Survivors include:
Gracie Cooper, wife of 63 years; his daughters, Pam Bainum (and husband Philip) of Houston, Diane Conger (and husband Brad) and Laurie Cooper who live in Brownwood;
His sisters Eileen Wilson, Judy Rothell (and husband George) and Betty Walker who live in New Braunfels; his grandson Brandon Bunyard, granddaughter Angela Coons and husband Marcus and great granddaughter Lilly from Houston. He is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews.
He is preceded in death by his father William W. Cooper, Sr., mother Genevieve Henneke, stepfather Charles Henneke, stepmother Gussie Cooper, father-in-law Jospeh DeCarlo, mother-in-law Grace DeCarlo, brother-in-law Larry Walker and best friends Jim Hundemer and Don Davis.
In Lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to honor Bill to: The Gideons or The Salvation Army.
Online condolences, memories and tributes can be made to the family at www.heartlandfuneralhome.net.
