University of Delaware Athletics
Delaware Athletics Mourns Death of Popular Former Longtime Equipment Manager Bill “Coop” Cooper
3/10/2017 1:30:00 PM | Delaware Athletics
• Obituary
NEWARK, Del. -- The University of Delaware lost one of the most beloved members of the Blue Hens athletics family earlier this week when former equipment manager Bill Cooper passed away at the age of 80 on Tuesday in Bear after a brief illness.
“Coop”, as he was affectionately known to hundreds of Blue Hen student-athletes, coaches, and athletics staff members, worked in the equipment rooms at both the Delaware Field House and the 
Bob Carpenter Center. He joined the UD staff as an assistant to Lun Thompson in 1966 and retired in 1998 after 32 years of dedicated service to UD athletics, most of them as the head equipment manager.
A visitation for family and friends will be held from 9:30 am until 10:30 am on Saturday, March 11, at the Spicer-Mullikin Funeral Home, 121 West Park Place, Newark, Del., where a funeral service will be held at 10:30 am. Interment will follow in Silverbrook Cemetery, Lancaster Ave. and DuPont Rd., Wilmington, Del.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Christiana Care Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, c/o the Christiana Care Foundation, P.O. Box 1668, Wilmington, Del., 19899.
A native Delawarean, Coop was born in Wilmington on June 18, 1936, and was the son of the late William and Helen (Jones) Cooper. He was often described by those who knew him as big-hearted and kind and would literally give you the shirt off his back. He adored spending time with his nieces and nephews, and shared a special bond with his nephew, Billy, with whom he was particularly close.
During his tenure at Delaware, Coop worked with thousands of Blue Hen student-athletes, coaches, and staff member and quickly became one of the most beloved members of the UD athletics family.
Former UD student-athletes could tell countless of stories of their cheerful interactions with Coop, about the times he brought the baseball team coolers with hot chocolate on a cold day, when he brought popsicles to the women's soccer team on hot days, and when he drove to the Philadelphia Airport to deliver a uniform that was forgotten by a student-athlete.
“They call me Poppa Coop around here,” Coop told the Wilmington News Journal in a 1998 article announcing his retirement due to health reasons. “UD athletes are my kids and I'm like a father to them. They've been my life.”
MEDIA INFORMATION: Contact Scott Selheimer | selheime@udel.edu | Office: 302-831-8007 | Cell: 302-562-5129
