HR native retires after 41 years in fire service

“My dad was a volunteer firefighter for West Side Fire Department in Hood River,” Cooper was quoted in a department press release. “I would go with him on calls. I was drawn to the family atmosphere in the station and how everybody would come together when there was an incident and handle it. When I was 16, I got into the Oregon fire service as a student firefighter with West Side.”

From West Side, Cooper served with Marion County Fire District and Woodburn Fire Department as a student intern before being hired as a professional firefighter in 1978 by Woodburn when he graduated from Chemeketa Community College’s fire science program.

As Cooper edged toward his final duty shift and looked ahead toward finishing his cabins and other building projects in Hood River, he admitted it will be hard to let this chapter in his professional life come to a close.

“The fire service offered the highest of highs and lowest of lows — from the exhilarating excitement that comes from delivering babies to seeing the saddest things happen to people that don’t make any sense and everything in between,” Cooper said. “I’ve never had one day where I have not appreciated my job. I’ve had an amazing ride.”

His retirement also closes a chapter in the fire district’s history, as he was one of the last Tualatin Rural Fire Protection District firefighters among TVF&R’s ranks. Cooper served with the Tualatin Rural Fire Protection District when it merged with Washington County Fire District 1 in 1989 to form Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue.

In the early days, firefighters worked on two- or three-person truck companies rather than the four-person crews TVF&R has today. Firefighters also performed fire inspections of area businesses completed today by deputy fire marshals and tested hydrants. With new development and steady population growth in the area came increases in service demands that prompted the district to shift some firefighter responsibilities.

The growth of the area prompted mixed emotions, Cooper said. “It was hard to see some of the most fertile farmland turned over, paved and built upon. We saw so many little farms go away as houses were planted.”