Obituary of Joyce R. Cooper

Joyce Ruth Moffett Cooper (December 3, 1939 – December 6, 2023) passed away after a recent illness. A lifelong resident of Kenton County, Kentucky, she grew up in Ryland Heights, and graduated from Simon Kenton High School in 1958. She married Don (Buddy) Cooper in 1959, and began their new life together in Latonia.

              They had three children, Rev. D. Scott Cooper, Vicki Cooper Shoemaker, and Randall Alan (Randy) Cooper, and moved to Independence. The family became active in the Florence Methodist Church. Randy passed away in 1982 after fighting a brain tumor. They stayed in the Ronald McDonald House in Chicago while there for his surgery, and became advocates for the charity.

              Very active in her children’s lives, she was often “room mother” for elementary school classes, and she and Buddy were chaperones on many marching band trips during their kid’s high school years. They enjoyed traveling and camping, often vacationing to Carter Caves State Park, Disneyland, and once to England during the Queen’s Silver Jubilee.

After the death of Randy, she became a valued and knowledgeable worker in the Bridal Registry at McAlpin’s and was a doting grandmother for Vicki’s son and daughter. She was diagnosed with breast cancer, and overcame it. She and Buddy continued to travel, visiting 46 of the United States and several places in Canada. They also volunteered at Action Ministries, enjoyed local theatre productions, and enjoyed lunching with longtime friends.

              She is survived by Buddy, her husband of 64 years, son Scott (Conrad Hamric), daughter Vicki (Gary Shoemaker), grandson Evan Vickers, granddaughter Andrea Vickers Massey (Tyler Massey), siblings Thomas (Tommy) Moffett, Jr. (Marilyn Cooper Moffett) and Patricia (Patty) Moffett Whiteker, and many relatives and friends who will miss her deeply.

              Visitation will be held between 10 AM and 12 PM with the funeral service to immediately follow at 12 PM on Thursday, December 14th at Chambers & Grubbs Funeral Home, 11382 Madison Pike Independence, KY 41051. Joyce will be laid to rest at Floral Hills Memorial Gardens in Taylor Mill. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to either Action Ministries https://actionministries.org or the Ronald McDonald House https://www.rmhcincinnati.org. For directions or to share an online condolence, please visit the corresponding tabs on this page.