Robert “Bo” Cooper, 67, Tom Bean, passed away on Tuesday, July 30th, 2024. He passed away peacefully in his sleep in the comfort of his wife and beloved dog Shiloh.
Bo was born on November, 6th, 1956 to Clifton and Doris Cooper in Alexandria, LA. He was born 2nd in order of his 7 siblings. Bo was a very hard to handle and stubborn youngster that kept his mom on her toes. Even at an early age he had problem solving skills that would make an adult jealous. When he was five he had long curly hair that his mom would pull when he was in trouble. The last time she did it he decided she would never do it again. So at five years old he got a quarter and walked several blocks to the barbers by himself and demanded they shave his head. Afterward he marched himself home and told his mom you will never be able to pull my hair again. This little antidote encompasses who Bo Cooper was. Stubborn for days and armed with the motto “where there is a will there is a way”.
Bo and his siblings grew up in the worst part of Dallas imaginable with a one of those places being Oak Cliff. Needless to say he learned the way of the streets and became one of the toughest guys around and made a pretty big name for himself in Oak Cliff. However that was not all there was to Bo; he had an insatiable love for sports; especially football. He didn’t just love the sport but was an exceptional athlete. He had hopes of his abilities in football to pivot his future away from the hard streets he grew up on. College football would be his ticket for better things, then fate decided different plans for this young man with a chip on his shoulder. He sustained a knee injury that changed his football career forever. He then lost interest in the future and decided school was not for him and didn’t return back to school. Instead he worked and ran the streets not really having any sort of direction in life.
This is when a beautiful girl and her little boy came along and forever changed his life and gave him purpose. He met Debbie Henley in 1975 at the local 7-Eleven. He was immediately smitten and worked hard to get this girl to date him. On February 9th, 1976 Bo and Debbie were married and they became a family of three including their son Michael. A little later they had their daughter Makala. During this time Bo’s 5 younger siblings came to live with the couple in a small apartment. This would not be the last time that the young couple took in loved ones in need. Throughout Bo’s life he would provide shelter to siblings, nephews, nieces, in laws, parents, uncles, aunts, and the list literally goes on. Bo may not have been wallowing in riches because Bo and Debbie choose to be rich with love and family.
When Michael became old enough to play sports Bo was ecstatic this gave him an outlet to feed his soul. This would be the start of 44+ years on and off of coaching or working with youth and sports in some way. He absolutely loved it but not only that he was also exceptional at it.
Bo and Debbie struggled on and off through their lives moving here and there trying to find the perfect place to raise their children and to make sure their children grew up in a better way then they both did. During a financial struggle where they were forced to start over after the oil fields crashed in the late 80’s they made a move to be closer to family and discovered the town of Tom Bean. They both fell in love with quaint little town where everybody knew everybody and their children could grew up away from the world they were both from. Not long after the move Bo would start his career with the post office and Debbie would become the town babysitter. For the first time their lives became stable and they would continue to help family member in need. Many nieces and nephews ended up going to the Tom Bean schools at one point or another and were even coached by their uncle Bo in one sport or another.
In 1992, Bo and Debbie adopted a beautiful baby boy. He would change the family dynamic forever and gave life to a couple who did not know what to do with their kids practically grown. You see Bo and Debbie have never had an empty nest and never wanted to be empty nesters. They like their lives and house full. Bo would go on to coach Matthew as he had done with Michael and this would eventually lead over to his grandchildren. Bo pretty much coached all of his grandchildren boys and girls alike in one sport or another. If he wasn’t coaching you better bet he was in the stands somewhere as close to the team as he could get intently watching the game so he could not only cheer but also coach his player after. You never got just a good job if you were his you also got what you needed to do to improve because he wanted the best out of you and for you.
Bo retired from the post office in 2016. In the last few years he was known as one of the local florist’s delivery guy. He loved making people’s days. He loved bringing happiness to others. It was very fitting job for the retiree. He looked like a tough guy but really he was just a big teddy bear filled of love and devotion for his wife and family and it spilled over to his community.
In his last year he supported and mentored his granddaughter Madisyn in every sport to give her the best outcome her senior year. During that time he helped coach his grandson Brayden in basketball and umped during baseball. He was at most games that his younger granddaughters and grandson played. There were not a lot of evenings that Bo and Debbie spent at home because they usually could be found in a ball park somewhere. In his final days Bo was working out with his grandson and getting him ready for football season. In his final days he was doing what he loved.
Bo was always the loudest guy in the room with that one of kind laugh. He remembered things that no one else could possibly remember. He knew stats back to 1989 when Michael played school to stats to what his beloved Rams did in 1971. He was the most educated man you will ever come across in sports in general. Bo was the most devoted and loyal fan. It didn’t matter Rather he was cheering for his favorite pro sports teams or cheering for Tom Bean his intensity and love for them shined through. He was also intensely known to hate on some teams as well.
Bo also was a rare guy that knew dates. He could tell you not only the date when he met his beloved Debra but he could tell you almost the hour he met her after 48 years of marriage. Bo remembered details and dates in his personal life that really meant something to him.
Bo was one of kind. All rooms got a lot quieter without him. We will not only miss his presence, and intensity, but we will miss his laugh and boisterous nature. Our world just got way to quiet. Bo was a beloved son, brother, husband, father, uncle, grandfather, friend, coworker, great grandfather coach, fan, and all around great man to know.
Bo was predeceased by his parents (Clifton and Doris), his In-laws (Fred and Sallie), and his BIL (Fred Jr). Bo is survived by his wife, Debra Cooper of Tom Bean; children, Michael Cooper and wife, Lauren, of Tom Bean, Makala and husband, Greg, of Denison, and Matthew and wife, Laci, of Randolph. Bo was survived by 15 grandchildren: Morgan, Bailey, Haley, Michael, Rylie, Ravin, James, Madisyn, Reese, Jackson, Brantley, Brayden, Ava, Cailynn, and Caden. Bo is survived by two great grandchildren, Kain and Maive. He is survived by 6 siblings: Nick, Kathy, Julie, Jerry, Terry and Walter.
Services will be held at the First United Baptist church in Tom Bean on Monday, August 5th at 6pm.