He was born July 12, 1949, in Lexington, KY, son of Ernest P. “Bud” and Marion (Hanes) Cooper of Greenville, OH.
Bill was an attorney with Hanes Law Group in Greenville. He was one of the last draftees of the Vietnam War after his graduation from Bowling Green State University and served as a military police dog handler while in the US Army. After law school graduation from Ohio Northern University, he was commissioned as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel having served with the Ohio Natioinal Guard from 1978 until his retirement from the Guard in 2007. Upon retirement from the Ohio National Guard, he was awarded the Legion of Merit and the Ohio Distinguished Service medals. He was the Command Judge Advocate of Task Force Buckeye assisting in the clean-up efforts following Hurricane Katrina. Bill was a member of the Ohio Bar Association, Darke County Bar Association, American Legion, the Darke County Veterans Service Commission, Edison Community College adjunct faculty, and had previously served on the boards of Darke County Family Health and the Darke County YMCA.
He is survived by his wife of 37 years, Nancy (Park) Cooper, whom he married on May 22, 1976; sons, Edward Park (Erin) Cooper of Orange, CA, and Timothy William (Lauren) Cooper of Portland, OR; grandchildren, Emily and Evelyn Cooper; sister, Nancy (Jeff) Farris of Brighton, MO; and parents, Bud and Marion Cooper of Greenville, OH.
Memorial services with full military ceremony by the Greenville Veterans Honor Guard will be held at 11 a.m., Friday, March 28, 2014, at the Oliver-Floyd Funeral Home in Greenville.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home Friday, March 28 from 10 a.m. until the time of service.
The family requests that in lieu of flowers that memorial contributions be given to the Greenville Veterans Honor Guard or the Greenville Public Library.
Condolences may be left for the family at www.oliverfloyd.com