William Jacob Cooper

William Jacob Cooper, who preferred to be known as "Jake W. Cooper" passed away peacefully in his sleep on Nov. 1, 2013, at home with his daughter and son-in-law in Milo, Mo.

Jake was born March 3, 1917, in Clinton, Mo., to Stith and Ella (Maple) Cooper. Jake and Addie Carbah were married in 1938 in Carthage, Mo. They were living in eastern Oklahoma, near the Pitcher/Miami area, where he worked as a grocery clerk for six years before joining the United States Army. While in the Army, Jake trained at Ft. Knox, Ky., then shipped off to fight the war as a member of the 740th Tank Battalion. His battalion was known as the 740th Daredevils and they fought in the Ardennes, Central Europe and the Rhineland.

After returning safely home to his wife in Oklahoma in 1946, Jake and Addie moved around a bit, from Oklahoma to Washington, then finally settled in Marysville, Calif. While in Marysville, while working various construction jobs, Jake and Addie established a dairy, raised cattle and had their two children. Their daughter, Barbara Joy, was born on Nov. 23, 1948, and their son, William Henry, was born and died on March 21, 1955.

On Feb. 20, 1963, Jake was widowed as a result of Addie's early and untimely death. Jake remained in Marysville with their young daughter, Barbara, until around 1975 or so, then moved to Oregon, where he again raised cattle and farmed for awhile.

On July 30, 1988, Jake married Willodene Ross. Shortly thereafter, Jake and Dean moved to Sheldon, Mo., where Jake farmed and raised cattle for another 10 years. In 2000, they moved to Watts, Okla. Jake enjoyed his final years of life in Watts with his loving wife, Dean. Dean preceded him in death earlier this year on April 14, 2013

Jake was preceded in death by many of his loved ones including his infant son, William Henry; his first wife, Addie (Carbah) Cooper; his second wife, Willodene (Ross) Cooper; his parents, Stith and Ella (Maple) Cooper; brothers, George T Cooper, Lee K Cooper, Charly Cooper, Frank Cooper, Stith Cooper Jr. and Fred Cooper; and sisters, Jewell, Flora and Ella-Marie Cooper.

Survivors include his daughter, Barbara Clark and son-in-law, Jim; sister, Jessie Hensley; brother, Tom Cooper; granddaughters, Kristine H. Putland, Annette Longenbaugh and Tamara D. Clark; great-grandsons, Jared Holtsberry, Ryan Longenbaugh and Tristan Putland; and numerous additional nieces, nephews and many, many other dear friends and associates, who will miss him greatly.

Funeral services were held at 11 a.m., Thursday, Nov. 7, at Roberts & Hart Chapel, Westville, Okla. Interment will follow at Westville City Cemetery.