Gerald Everett Cooper

Services for Gerald E. Cooper, 71, of Bullard, will be held on Thursday, December 27, 2012 at 2:00 PM at Stewart Family Funeral Home Chapel with Roy Cooper officiating. Burial will be held at Rose Hill Cemetery under the direction of Stewart Family Funeral Home. Mr. Cooper passed away December 23, 2012. He was born August 6, 1941 in Flint to Elvis and Juanita Stainback Cooper. Mr. Cooper was a 1959 graduate of Bullard High School. He attended Tyler Junior College in Business programming. Gerald worked as a systems analyst and data processing manager for Brookshire’s for 15 years. He later worked for Bealls Department Store as a systems analyst and retired from there. Gerald was a charter member of the Cotton Belt Rail Historical Society, Tyler Tap Chapter. He was servering on the board as Vice President of business for the CBRHS, Tyler Tap Chapter and is a past board member of Pine Bluff Cotton Belt Rail Historical Society in Arkansas. Gerald was instrumental in collecting historical memorabilia for the CBRHS, Tyler Tap Chapter and was involved each year with the CBRHS, Tyler Tap Chapter Train Show held at Harvey Hall. He was also a member of the Kansas City Southern Historical Society and a member of the National Railway Historical Society. He helped the Ark-La-Tex Modular Club, show the HO scale model trains at the Children’s Ward of the Shriners’ Hospital twice a year in Shreveport, Louisiana. Mr. Cooper was a past member of the Whitehouse Volunteer Fire Department and was Smith County Volunteer “Fireman of the Year”. Gerald is preceded in death by his parents and wife Bobbie Ann Cooper. He is survived by his loving family including brother, Roy and wife Barbara Cooper of Chandler; sister, Sandra and husband Bobby Young of Palestine; sister-in-law, Martha and Jim Shepard of Georgetown; nieces, Lisa Cooper of Dallas, Mitzi and Daniel Bluntzer of Robstown, Casandra and Mike Hodson of Dallas and Traci Ratliff of Palestine; and nephew, Robbie Shepard of CA. Pallbearers will be Sam Crow, Ernest DeWolf, Bob Cox, Larry Gilley, Jimmy Whitehead, and Danny Hogden Jr. Honorary pallbearers will be the members of the Cotton Belt Rail Historical Society, Tyler Tap Chapter. Visitation is scheduled from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Wednesday, December 26, 2012 at Stewart Family Funeral Home, 7525 Old Jacksonville Highway, in Tyler. If desired, memorials may be made to CBRHS, Tyler Tap Chapter, PO Box 6326, Tyler, 75711-6326.

Gerald Everett Cooper

August 6, 1941 - December 23, 2012