James Lafayette Cooper Iii

Cooper, James L., III


James LaFayette Cooper, III of Lawrenceville died at home of liver cancer December 1, 2013. A native of Laurens, SC, he was the son of the late James L. Cooper, Jr. and Dorothy Lexine Copeland Cooper. He was a retired Lieutenant Colonel U.S. Army Reserve and served two tours in Vietnam. He was a licensed embalmer and funeral director in both South Carolina and Georgia. He retired from Emory University with twenty-one years of service as an embalmer and funeral director with the School of Medicine's Body Donor Program. He is survived by his wife of 25 years, Susan Benefield Cooper of Lawrenceville; brother, William C. (Bill) and his partner, Martin Meek, of Enoree, SC; cousins, Emily W. (Charles) Marler and Betty W. (R.T.) Smith, both of Laurens, SC and Alice W. (Bert) Carmody of Atlanta; mother-in-law, Sara S. Benefield of Lawrenceville; sister-in-law, Ann Benefield (Randy) Davis of Dacula; and nephew, Justin W. Davis of Dacula. Funeral will be held at 11:00 am, Wednesday December 4, 2013 at Wages and Sons Gwinnett Chapel with the Reverend Dr. Lamar Holley officiating. The family will receive friends from 2-5 and 6-8 pm, Tuesday, December 3, at Wages & Sons Gwinnett Chapel. Graveside service and burial will be Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in Laurens City Cemetery. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Georgia Sheriff's Youth Homes, P.O. Box 1000, Stockbridge, GA 30281 or to the Laurens City Cemetery, P.O. Box 21, Laurens, SC 29360. Arrangements by Wages & Sons Gwinnett Chapel, 1031 Lawrenceville Hwy., Lawrenceville, GA 30046, 770-277-4550. Online condolences may be expressed at www.wagesandsons.com .