MY CRIB ON THE NET
KENNY'S PLACE
BIRTHDATE: January 25, 1990
PASSED AWAY: November 27, 2003 (Thanksgiving Day)
Hard to believe you've been gone for over 5 years now. Everyone loves and misses you so much! You've missed so many of your brother & sister's "firsts". But I'm sure you have been there, just as you are here now, in spirit and memories. Love, Uncle Kenny
HAPPY 19th BIRTHDAY BLAINE!
Blaine's last school picture, 2003
Memorials his grandparents put in the newspaper in November 2004 and 2005 (click for full size)
Blaine (in the LCMS Band) and his dad at the Chicken Pie Festival in Smithville, GA on October 25, 2003
Blaine, his Mom and Grandpa Bo on the swing and his dad standing by. Taken only hours before the accident
Blaine's Gravesite & A Close-Up Of His Ledger
My 13 year old nephew Blaine was killed when he lost control of the 4-wheeler he was driving on Thanksgiving Day evening around 5:40 PM. He had just left from eating Thanksgiving dinner with his whole family at his Aunt Tina's and Uncle Jim's house in Leesburg, GA. He, his sister and brother all went home with their grandfather, Bo Cooper, to spend time with him and their grandmother at their home in Camilla, GA (about 40 minutes away). As soon as they got to Bo's house, Blaine went and jumped on the 4-wheeler to go riding, something he loved to do. The accident occured within minutes. He was wearing a helmet but it did no good as a witness said the 4-wheeler flipped several times and then landed directly on him, crushing him. The witness tried to revive him but to no avail. His funeral was held on Monday, December 1, 2003 at the First Baptist Church of Leesburg in Leesburg, GA where Blaine resided and was an eighth grader in Lee County Middle School. He played the trumpet in the band. He loved to hunt, play video games and do other outdoor activities. He loved working with his grandfather Bo, who he called Bo-Daddy. He harvested his first deer in 2002 while hunting with his father. He had been baptized on November 2nd, just 25 days before his death. He was a special little guy who loved to smile and greet people with hugs. He touched many people's lives. At his funeral his aunt Marie (Cooper) Tison sang a beautiful gospel song and they started the funeral with a gospel song that Blaine had been walking around singing right before his death titled, "I Can Only Imagine" by the group Mercy Me. He is survived by his mother and father, David and Michelle Cooper, one brother, Brandon David and one sister, Brittany Michelle. He is also survived by both sets of grandparents, several aunts, uncles, cousins and many other relatives and friends. Blaine's best friend, Jacob Kenneth Davis, who was also 13, died in his sleep from a heart disrhytmia on November 9, 2002, almost exactly a year prior to Blaine. Blaine is buried near Jacob (you can see Jacob's headstone & ledger, the reddish brown marble one with the small white cross at the end of it, in the top gravesite picture above). We like to think that Blaine and Jacob are now playing together again.
SEE THE ALBANY, GA WALB-TV 10 ACCIDENT ARTICLE
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE BENCH DEDICATED BY L.C.M.S. PTO
Pictured Below: Blaine's ATV after he had the accident; the wooden cross his Uncle Jim made that was placed at the accident site on Christmas Day, 2003; Blaine's funeral notice; His Grandma Reich visiting his gravesite before his headstone was in place (there are 4 more photos with this one) (click photos to see full size and description):
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE NEWSPAPER ARTICLE ABOUT THE ACCIDENT
UPDATES: January 25, 2007- This would have been Blaine's 17th Birthday. Happy Birthday Blaine! I love you! October 30, 2006- Blaine's first nephew is born to his sister Brittany and her husband SJ. They name him Stevan Blaine. June 10, 2006- Blaine's sister Brittany married Stevan J. Miner. January 25, 2006- This would have been Blaine's 16th Birthday. I've added a photo I took of his gravesite on this day. You see a rainbow of colors flooding over his grave from the setting sun. I've also added photos of the flowers my sister got and the memorial she put in the newspaper for his 16th Birthday. March 30, 2005- Blaine's mom, Michelle, started the Southwest Georgia Chapter of Bereaved Parents of the USA to help others and herself deal with the grief due to the loss of a child. For more info or to make donations please email her at sowegabp.usa@gmail.com. November 27, 2004- Today makes one year ago that Blaine was killed. It seems like just yesterday. We miss him so much and think about him every day. My parents put the memorial poem to him in the Lee County Ledger newspaper that you see at the top of this page. November 4, 2004- A bench was just dedicated to Lee County Middle School by the L.C.M.S. 2003-2004 Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) that has Blaine's name and the name of two others who died during that school year on it. It sits out in front of the Lee County Middle School. See Bench Here October 30, 2004- Blaine's headstone and ledger are now in place (in case you don't know, the ledger is the long slab that covers the grave and has the information on it). His picture finally came back and is now mounted at the top of the ledger. A lot of people don't know this but they actually have an artist hand paint the picture on porcelain from the photo that you give them. That is why it takes so long to get it done (usually about 8+ weeks). My sister, her husband and other family members, including me, had all agreed that it makes it much more personal for the family when visiting the gravesite and for other people visiting the graveyard to have the photo on there. My parents put a nice two-person bench at his gravesite for visitors. A lot of gifts and memorabilia have been placed on Blaine's gravesite by family and friends too.
BLAINE: THROUGH THE YEARS (Click to see full size picture and description)
CLICK HERE FOR BLAINE'S 14th BIRTHDAY MEMORIALS
Click Here For Blaine's 16th Birthday Memorial
Below is a picture of Blaine with his sister Brittany less than a month before his death. His personality really shines through in this picture:
One of the many photo-story videos I did in memory of Blaine:
In Loving Memory Of My Nephew Blaine Donavan Cooper
For family members and friends only: Download two of the video photo stories I made in tribute to Blaine, featuring one of his favorite songs, "I Can Only Imagine" by clicking here. You must have a username and password to visit this page. If you are interested in seeing the photo stories, email me.
If you've recently lost a child, visit the Bereaved Parents of the USA for grief support. If you live in the Southwest Georgia area, need grief support and/or would like to attend the meetings, visit the chapter started by Blaine's mother, the Southwest Georgia Chapter of Bereaved Parents of the USA.
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October 2004
This is a bench that was dedicated by the Lee County Middle School (LCMS) 2003-2004 Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) to LCMS. It has the names of the three people who died during that school year on it which includes my nephew Blaine Cooper, a student, Jake Wills, another student and a security officer, Craig Steele. The bench sits out in front of the school.
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