Elliott E. Cooper Sr.

FOREST CITY - Elliott E. Cooper Sr., age 84 of Forest City, died Wednesday, March 26, 2008 at the Good Samaritan Care Center in Forest City.



Funeral service will be Monday, March 31st at 11:00 AM at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Forest City with Pastor Barb Spaulding officiating. Burial will be at Madison Township Cemetery in Forest City.



Visitation will be held on Sunday, March 30th from 4 to 7 PM at the funeral home and an hour prior to service at the church.





Elliott E. Cooper was born on January 15, 1924 to Carl and Mary (Williams) Cooper in New Hampton, Missouri. After graduating from New Hampton High School in 1941 he attended the University of Michigan on a National Defense Scholarship. In 1943 he entered the United States Army and served until Honorably Discharged in 1945. Notably he was the last living Winnebago County resident to have participated in the Normandy Invasion, and his Unit was one of the first United States Army Units to enter the Concentration Camp at Buchenwald.





He and Anna J. Oline were united in marriage on November 25, 1945 in Independence, Iowa. The couple then moved to Des Moines, Iowa where he completed his education at Drake University.





He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Drake University on May 30, 1949 and his Juris Doctor Degree from the School of Law at Drake University on January 28, 1951. He was admitted to the Bar on February 17, 1951. He and Anna then moved to Forest City, Iowa where he practiced law until his retirement in 2005.





He was instrumental in creating Winnebago Industries, Inc. from the ruins of Modernistic Industries, and during his tenure as an Officer and Director saw the Company rise to membership in the Fortune 500. He founded what is now Manufacturers Bank and Trust Co.





He was a member and supporter of many local organizations, and was a member of the Forest City Lions Club for over 50 years. In 1958 he and Anna were chosen by the Lions of Iowa to be the Official Escort for Miss Iowa when the Iowa Hawkeyes played in the 1959 Rose Bowl Game.





Throughout his adult life he was an enthusiastic supporter of Drake University, and in 1969 he and Anna were named Drake University Parents of the Year.





He had a keen interest in American History especially Colonial America, the Revolutionary War, and the American Civil War. He was a supporter of a number of organizations dedicated to preserving those periods of our History, and constantly strived to improve his knowledge on those subjects.





He was an avid fisherman, flower gardener, woodworker, and baseball fan. He and Anna traveled the world yet nothing gave him more pleasure than simply being at home with his family.





He is survived by his wife of more than 62 years Anna Cooper, sons Elliott Cooper, Jr. of Forest City and Robert Cooper and wife Donna of Forest City and her children Katy and Derek Juhl, grandson Michael Cooper and wife Christie of Dallas, Texas and her daughter Amber Davison and granddaughter Amy Cooper of Mason City, Iowa.



Those wishing to extend a memorial may direct it to the Good Samaritan Society of Forest City or Hospice of North Iowa.