Philip Harry Cooper, 82, of Greenville, S.C. and Kiawah Island, S.C., died on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2012, at his home at The Cascades Verdae, after a courageous battle with lung cancer.
Born and raised in Bloomfield, N.J., Phil was a graduate of Lafayette College, with a degree in chemistry. He went on to earn his MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson University, attending night school, while beginning his 33-year-long career at Sherwin-Williams Paint Company and raising his young family.
In 1952, Phil married Betty Slater Cooper. They shared their lives together for 55 years until she passed away in 2007. Phil and Betty lived in Glen Ridge, N.J. They were members of Grace Presbyterian Church in Montclair, N.J., where they both sang in the choir and with the Montclair Community Chorus.
In 1971, Phil and his family moved to Brecksville, Ohio. In 1976, the family moved to Frankfort, Ill. Then, in 1986, Phil retired from Sherwin-Williams and he and his wife moved to their home in Tryon. After his wife’s death, Phil moved to The Cascades Verdae in 2008.
Regardless of where he called home, Phil was always involved with his church and community. He was a member and trustee of the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago Heights. He was the president of the Tryon Concert Association for 20 years and an active member of the Tryon Presbyterian Church, serving as an elder and singing in the choir. Phil was a volunteer at St. Luke’s Hospital for many years, where he served as member of the St. Luke’s Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees. Phil was also elected into Tryon’s “Second Wind Hall of Fame.”
Phil had a passion for traveling the world. As he always liked to say with a chuckle, “I’ve been to all seven continents. I’ve sailed in all of the seven seas. I’ve been to every state in the United States of America, except one. So, I guess I’ve done it all, but North Dakota!” He also had a lifelong love for classical music, camping, sharing good food and fellowship with family and friends, and, of course, his many faithful dogs.
Survivors include his son, Philip Kent Cooper of Louisville, Ky., and his daughters, Carolyn Cooper Elsey of Landrum and Laura Cooper Hoekstra of Greenville, S.C. Phil had four grandchildren: Philip Blake Cooper, Shaun Morgan Cooper, Taylor Lee Elsey and David Martin Hoekstra. He is also survived by his two brothers: Robert Jay Cooper of Haworth, N.J., and Spencer David Phraner, of Cummings, Ga. and Wurtsboro, N.Y.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 25 at the Tryon Presbyterian Church, with a reception to follow the service. A celebration of his life will also be held at The Cascades Verdae at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 26.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Interim HealthCare Hospice, 16 Hyland Road, Greenville, S.C. 29615 or Tryon Presbyterian Church, 430 Harmon Field Road, Tryon, N.C. 28782.
On-line condolences may be sent to www.mcfarlandfuneralchapel.com.
McFarland Funeral Chapel, Tryon.