Colonel Ted Vernon Cooper (Ret.) U.S. Army
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Colonel (Ret.) Ted Vernon Cooper was born April 15, 1931 to Burl and Lura Cooper in Erwin, Tennessee. Ted was one of five children, three of which survive him (Donald Cooper, and wife Alien, Bobby Cooper, and Toby Cooper, and wife Susan). His early education was in the public schools of Unicoi County, Tennessee. He later earned a B.S. and M.B.A. from East Tennessee State University, in Johnson City Tennessee. Ted was also a graduate of the Armed Forces Staff College and the U.S. Army War College, and conducted additional graduate work at the George Washington University and Penn State University.
Ted served 34 years in the U.S. Army, and retired at the rank of Colonel. His service included tours of duty in Vietnam, France, and Germany. Ted also served as the Comptroller at Carlisle Barracks, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and the Director of the U.S. Army Finance School in Indianapolis, Indiana. He returned to Carlisle for his last assignment, as a professor in the Department of Command, Leadership, and Management at the U.S. Army War College. After retiring from the Army in 1986, Ted continued in the field of higher education as a professor in the business department at Charleston Southern University for fifteen years.
Ted was an active member of the Bethany United Methodist Church in Summerville, where he was especially fond of Spell Chapel and an active member of the Sue Knight Sunday School Class, serving two terms as president, and for eleven years in the public relations office. He was also a member of the Benevolent Brotherhood of the Elks and a 32nd Degree Mason.
Ted was a devoted husband and loving father. He is survived by his wife of fifty-seven years, Peggy Campbell of Atlanta, Georgia, two children (James C. Cooper, and wife Christine of Alexandria Virginia and Elizabeth Cooper Anderson, and husband Peter of Daniel Island, South Carolina), and four grandchildren (Austin, Campbell, Olivia, and Lilian).
Family and friends are invited to attend his visitation on Tuesday, June 29, 2021 from 1 o'clock to 2 o'clock at James A. Dyal Funeral Home. A funeral service will begin at 2 o'clock at James A. Dyal Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will be at a later date at Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggest that gifts of honor be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or the Epworth Children's Home.