David Lee Kooker – Major, United States Marin Corps

Major David L. Kooker Died October 5, 2005 at Watsonville (California) Community Hospital of natural causes, he was 59.

Major Kooker was born in Columbus, Ohio and was a resident of Watsonville, California.

David Kooker served in Viet Nam with a Marine rifle platoon. In 1969 and 70, he spent 13 months in the bush as a forward air controller, achieving the rank of Sergeant. After Viet Nam he went back to college and graduated from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, Massachusetts with a degree in Electrical Engineering.

Instead of accepting a job with Bose, he rejoined the Marines. He used to laugh that he was the oldest Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. He spent 26 years in the Marines before retiring in 1993 and moving to Aptos to join his father’s insurance business.

He is survived by his wife Raye, his son, John Kooker, of St. Augustine, Florida, his father and mother, Jack and Pat Kooker, of Watsonville, his sister Jill Coulter or Tucson, Arizona, his brother, Mark Kooker, of Memphis, Tennessee and his nieces, Victoria and Allison also of Memphis.

Services will be held at Davis Memorial Chapel, Thursday 10/13 at 2:00pm. Burial will be at Arlington National Cemetery, Fort Meyer, VA with full military honors, November 2005.

Donations can be made to US Marine Corps Toys for Tots.

KOOKER, DAVID LEE
MAJ   US MARINE CORPS
VIETNAM

• DATE OF BIRTH: 05/04/1946
• DATE OF DEATH: 10/05/2005
• BURIED AT: SECTION 64  SITE 4253
• ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard