William Howard Cooper

William "Bill" Howard Cooper passed away Friday, October 13, 2023, peacefully at home surrounded by
his family. He was 81.
Bill was born on August 14,1942 in Wilmington, Delaware to the late Joseph Howard Cooper and Louise Anne
Hildebrandt. He was the 4th of 8 children.
Bill enlisted in the Air Force in 1960. He was stationed at Donaldson Air Base in South Carolina, where he met
his future wife. Frances. He was then stationed at Hunter AFB in Georgia, Randolph AFB in Texas, Dover Air
Force Base in Delaware, Sembach AFB in Germany, McGuire AFB in New Jersey and lastly retired as a Master
Sargent at Dover AFB after 23 years of service. He was then employed by the Post Office. He retired from there
after 19 years.
Bill and Frances had two children, Mike who was born in South Carolina and Anne who was born in Georgia. He
was an avid reader and loved to read about history. He also liked to write about his life experiences. He was
passionate about his own family history and had extensive records dating back to the 1700’s. He enjoyed
watching his favorite baseball team. the Phillies. Bill loved anything associated with trains and had a collection
of model trains.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his stepfather, Bill Hilderbrandt; brothers Joseph, John,
and James; sisters Joanne Brown and Jean Poore; son Mike.
He is survived by his brother George and sister Patricia Cherricks. He is also survived by his wife Frances, who he
was married to for 60 years; daughter Anne Cooper (Richard); grandchildren Richard Jr. and Krystle Diaz (Allen);
great grandchildren Robert, Abigail, and Veda Diaz; many nieces and nephews.
He will be laid to rest at the Veterans Cemetery in Bear, Delaware.
In Lieu of flowers the family suggests donations be made to Heritage Baptist Church, P.O. Box 452 Camden,
Delaware 19934.

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