William "Bill" H. Cooley Jr.'s Obituary
The world lost a beloved father and grandfather, while heaven welcomed another soul into its gates. William (Bill) H. Cooley, born on April 18, 1926, was the son of the late William and Lynn Cooley. He peacefully departed this earthly life on Wednesday, August 30, 2023, at the age of 97 and re-united with his beautiful wife of 59 years, the late Patricia Cooley. He was also preceded in death by his parents and his brother Roger Cooley, and survived by his two wonderful daughters, Laura Cooley (husband Neil Fleischhacker) and Lisa Collins (husband Don Collins), and two granddaughters, Gabby and Abby Collins, as well as many other loved ones and friends.
A hard-working and determined man, “Billy Bob” was a proud patriot and World War II veteran, having enlisted at age 17 to serve in the US Navy. He met and fell in love with his wife, Patricia, and they married in 1963. They raised two amazing daughters, Laura and Lisa, and spent almost every day with their grandchildren. A strong and sure father, he worked hard to provide for his family and there were very few days where he was able-bodied and NOT doing anything productive or handling projects, big or small. All who knew him were well aware of his love for gardening (and his philosophy that talking to his plants makes them grow faster.) He was well-known by his love for sports, particularly basketball, football, and baseball, as well as a fondness for the sport of fishing. Also an avid birdwatcher, he spent just as many days re-filling his bird feeders and keeping track of every breed he saw.
For many years, he enjoyed spending summers with his family in Tomahawk, as well as many holidays and family Sunday dinners throughout his lifetime. He especially enjoyed cracking his teasing jokes (much to his family’s chagrin), and his granddaughters especially looked forward to their weekend breakfasts together, with Grandma’s cooking, Grandpa’s coffee, and his stack of newspaper funnies. A lover of all animals, he loved spending time with his cats, Bitsy and Daisy, as well as being the grandfather to 2 dogs, Maddie & Forrest, and 6 horses (Bullet, Rosy, Zelda, Jax, Mimi, and Aurora.) He was especially excited having met his granddaughter’s foal born on their farm in spring of 2022, and would often recall that moment even towards the end of his life.
The Cooley family wishes to thank all of those who cared for Bill during his final days at Wisconsin Veterans Home in King. He was loved by many, and will be missed by all.
If heaven has a lake and pier, Bill, in true fashion, would be sitting on it - with a cold one in his hand, and a fishing pole in the other.
Obituary courtesy of his granddaughter, Gabby
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