Vera Cooper

Vera Nance Cooper, 94, passed away on Friday, July 17, 2009 at Piedmont Crossing in Thomasville. Vera had been in declining health for several years. A funeral service will be held at 10:00 AM Monday, July 20 from the Davidson Funeral Home Chapel, with Rev. Carl Lindquist officiating. Burial will follow at Forest Hill Memorial Park. Mrs. Cooper was born on May 19, 1915 in Lexington, NC. She was the eldest of the two children of Robert Lee and Lonnie Miller Nance. She grew up and attended public schools in Lexington. Vera had one brother, Robert Hilden Nance, who passed away on December 2, 2000 at age 82. On June 24, 1933, she married Matthew Patrick Cooper, also of Lexington. Matthew passed away on January 3, 2002 at age 91. In her early years, Vera was a textile factory worker, and became a homemaker with the arrival of her children. Later, she worked as a sales clerk in a local department store, as a sales clerk for Green Printing Company, and as the bookkeeper for Cooper Insurance Agency. Vera was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Lexington for over 60 years and was active in the women’s groups of the church. Vera was a lifelong resident of Lexington. She and her husband, Matthew, resided at 402 Westside Drive from 1940 until 1959 and at 701 Evergreen Avenue from 1960 until 1998, when they relocated to an apartment at Piedmont Crossing in Thomasville, NC. Vera’s passion was reading and in the course of her lifetime she read a countless number of books covering a broad range of topics. Most importantly, she was a loving and caring daughter, wife and mother, who looked after her parents, her husband, her children, and her grandchildren with tireless energy and unlimited tender loving care. She was equally thoughtful of her many friends. Vera had a positive impact on everyone she met. Vera will be missed, but she will never be forgotten. Vera is survived by her two children, Lt. General Matthew T. Cooper, USMC (Ret) of Alexandria, Virginia, and Dr. Ann C. Bartholomay of Williamsburg, Virginia, her five grandchildren, Elizabeth Hudson Cooper Benoit of Lakeland, Florida, Elizabeth Moore McKenna of Centerville, Ohio; Kimberly Moore Spivey of Wilmington, North Carolina; Lt. Colonel Matthew D. Cooper, USMC of San Antonio, Texas, and Caroline G. Cooper of Alexandria, Virginia; and her 11 great grandchildren. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at Davidson Funeral Home. Memorials may be made to First United Methodist Church, 310 S. Main St, Lexington NC 27292 or to Piedmont Crossing, 100 Hedrick Drive, Thomasville NC 27360