Robert Lester Cooper

  General Notes:

Bob Cooper was born Sumner Lester Cooper. He changed his name when he married Blanche because they both liked the sound of Robert so much better. No one ever called him Sumner, not even his Mom. Bob is part Indian from his Fathers side and would introduce himself as "Bob, Chief of the Undocumented Indians" Bob and Blanche drove to California from Oklahoma in the early 1930's. Their car broke down half way there and Bob sold it on the Courthouse steps. They hopped a freight train to complete their journey. Bob worked at the jobs available, including picking Oranges. Eventually, he went to work at Standard Oil and worked his way up to area Manager. When he retired, Bob and Blanche traveled quite a bit. They circled the USA by train with Bob's sister Lorene. They went to Alaska with their sons and fished for giant Salmon. Bob was a 32nd degree Mason.

Robert married Blanche in Jan 1931 in Oklahoma. (Blanche died on 19 Jul 2003 in Thousand Oaks, CA.)