2014
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 14-002
       
       
       BY SENATOR(S) Tochtrop, Aguilar, Balmer, Baumgardner, Brophy,
       Cadman, Crowder, Grantham, Guzman, Harvey, Heath, Herpin, Hill,
       Hodge, Jahn, Johnston, Jones, Kefalas, Kerr, King, Lambert, Lundberg,
       Marble, Newell, Nicholson, Renfroe, Rivera, Roberts, Scheffel,
       Schwartz, Steadman, Todd, Ulibarri, Zenzinger, Carroll;
       also REPRESENTATIVE(S) Lebsock, Becker, Buck, Buckner, Conti,
       Coram, Court, DelGrosso, Dore, Duran, Everett, Exum, Fields, Fischer,
       Foote, Garcia, Gardner, Gerou, Ginal, Hamner, Holbert, Hullinghorst,
       Humphrey, Joshi, Kagan, Kraft-Tharp, Labuda, Landgraf, Lawrence,
       Lee, May, McCann, McLachlan, Mitsch Bush, Moreno, Murray,
       Navarro, Nordberg, Pabon, Peniston, Pettersen, Primavera, Priola,
       Rankin, Rosenthal, Ryden, Saine, Salazar, Schafer, Scott, Singer,
       Sonnenberg, Swalm, Szabo, Tyler, Vigil, Waller, Williams, Wilson,
       Wright, Young, Ferrandino.
       
       
          CONCERNING MEMORIALIZING FORMER SENATOR ELDON
       W. "COOP" COOPER. 
       
       
          WHEREAS, Our respected former colleague, Senator Eldon W.
       "Coop" Cooper, departed this life on April 16, 2013, at the age of 86; and
       
          WHEREAS, He was born on February 20, 1927, on his father's
       homestead at Kendrick, Colorado, before severe drought led his family
       to pack up its wagons and livestock and head north to Merino, Colorado,
       in 1932; and
       
          WHEREAS, Senator Cooper was a veteran of World War II, having
       been inducted into the Army at Fort Logan, Colorado, and serving in the
       Philippines, where he also lost a dear brother; and
       
          WHEREAS, For his actions in the war, Senator Cooper received the
       Asian Pacific Theater Ribbon, the Victory Medal, and the Good Conduct
       Medal and quickly rose from the rank of Private to that of Technician
       Fourth Grade, just below Sergeant; and
       
          WHEREAS, He married the love of his life, Mary Jo Scheidegger, in
       Fort Collins in 1947, and they remained together for 62 years until her
       passing in 2009; and
       
          WHEREAS, Senator Cooper was appointed by vacancy committee in
       1968 to represent House District 4, in Adams County, and continued to
       serve in the House as the representative for House District 30 in Denver
       until 1974; and
       
          WHEREAS, Senator Cooper was then elected to the Colorado Senate,
       serving Senate District 18 until 1978; and
       
          WHEREAS, As a member of the General Assembly, Senator Cooper
       served on the Game, Fish, & Parks; Health, Welfare, & Institutions;
       Labor & Employment Relations; Appropriations; Business Affairs &
       Labor; Education; Wildlife, Parks, Natural Resources, & Energy; and
       Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Energy committees, as well as
       serving on the Joint Budget Committee; and
       
          WHEREAS, Senator Cooper was the workingman's friend, promoting
       workers' safety and collective bargaining rights as a leader in the Denver
       Area Labor Federation; as an international representative for United
       Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Workers; and as president of
       the Colorado AFL-CIO; and
       
          WHEREAS, One of Senator Cooper's proudest legislative
       achievements was the creation of the senior citizen's lifetime fishing
       license; Senator Cooper's father, Samuel Cooper, was issued the first
       license of its kind; and
       
          WHEREAS, After leaving the General Assembly, in addition to
       continuing his fight for workers' rights, Senator Cooper served on the
       Colorado Division of Wildlife and was appointed by President Jimmy
       Carter as Assistant Director for the Department of Labor, Western
       Region; and
       
          WHEREAS, Senator Cooper and his wife Mary Jo left behind a grand
       living legacy as the proud parents of five children and an extended family
       that includes fifteen  grandchildren, thirty great-grandchildren, and five
       great-great-grandchildren; now, therefore,
       
          Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Sixty-ninth General Assembly of
       the State of Colorado, the House of Representatives concurring herein:
          
          That, in the death of Senator Eldon W. Cooper, the people of the state
       of Colorado have lost a dedicated public servant and outstanding citizen,
       and that we, the members of the  General Assembly, do hereby extend our
       deep and heartfelt sympathy to the members of his family and pay tribute
       to someone who served his state well and faithfully.
       
          Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Memorial be sent to
       Senator Cooper's children: Judy and Sonny Sherrin, of Tecumseh,
       Oklahoma; Sam and Debbie Cooper, of Dacono, Colorado; Doug and
       Diane Cooper, of Brighton, Colorado; Vicki and Ernie Rodrigues, of
       Morrison, Colorado; and Jeri and Randy Mitchell, of Lakewood,
       Colorado.
       
       
       
       
       
       ____________________________  ____________________________
       Morgan Carroll                       Mark Ferrandino
       PRESIDENT OF                    SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
       THE SENATE                        OF REPRESENTATIVES
       
       
       
       
       
       
       ____________________________  ____________________________
       Cindi Markwell                        Marilyn Eddins
       SECRETARY OF                CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE
       THE SENATE                        OF REPRESENTATIVES