Wayne Arthur Cooper

Wayne Arthur Cooper, 81, died Thursday, Jan 28, 2021 at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange.

Born May 3, 1939, in Dunsmuir, California to Arthur Randolph and Marjorie Ruth (McIntosh) Cooper. He graduated from Dunsmuir High School in 1957, where he was Captain of the school band. He worked for the Forest Service from 1957 through 1959 while also performing with the Shasta Collegians band before moving to Orange County. He met Sherrill Lee Way through a church function and on Dec. 16, 1961 they were married in Orange, Ca. where they made their home and raised their family.

He started his career in the Autonetics division at North American Aviation in 1960. He took night classes and in 1969 earned his bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from West Coast University. Through a series of mergers and sales, North American Aviation became part of North American Rockwell, which later became Rockwell International and finally Boeing. He briefly retired from Boeing before being asked to return, retiring for good in 1995.

He loved woodworking (a skill he picked up from his father-in-law), fishing (making trips up to the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains multiple times each year), Angels’ baseball, USC football and any NFL game he could watch. But above all else, Wayne loved his family, and he was always present for any and all of them.

He is survived by his son Scott (Mary) of Eastvale; daughter Leslie Labate of Riverside; sisters Eileen Stevenson of Folsom, Karen Johnson of Monroe, WA, and Karla Middleton of Harrisburg, OR; grandchildren Karly Giacalone (Tony) of Orange, Andrew Labate (Amanda) of Lakewood, and Nicole Carr of Lake Elsinore.

Wayne was preceded in death by his wife, Sherry (2012); sisters Janet Emerson (2012) and Marjorie Schuler (2015); and his parents.

In lieu of flowers, you may honor Wayne by contributing to the Wounded Warrior Project as he did, to carry on his memory. To share a memory/ photo of Wayne or send condolences to his family: WayneCooperMemorial@ gmail.com.

Wayne’s family and friends will be celebrating his life on April 17th, 2021 at Shannon Family Mortuary in Orange, Calif (714) 771-1000.