R Family Historian: Memories of My Grandma Cooper

This is my Grandma Cooper. I have so many wonderful memories of her and staying at her house in Panguitch, Utah. Whenever we would go to Grammy's house to visit, we would be greeted by the scents of homemade bread and chicken and noodles, or homemade soup. She always made us something good to eat for our arrival. The kitchen was also a place where I played the card game, “Spoons” with Gram. She would laugh, and laugh when I stole the spoon and took her pile of cards. She seemed almost pleased that I had stolen her pile. She was always such a happy, loving, good person. I had a lot of fun with her. She always made me feel like I was the smartest and most talented girl in the world.

My Grandma Cooper was the sweetest lady. She always seemed happy. I hardly ever heard her say a bad thing about another person. She had a hard life and yet she was very optimistic and happy. She never had much and yet what she had, she was proud of. She loved beauty and yet she was not prideful or vain. She liked to have nice things and yet she didn't complain about what she didn't have. When Grandma talked about something being expensive she said it was “too dear.” If she thought something was wonderful, she said it was "grand.” Sometimes when we were going some place in the car, she would look at all the other cars on the highway and would ask, “Do you think all these folks are going to the concert (or wherever we were going) too?” She couldn't imagine so many people going so many places and doing so many things. She never learned to drive a car. During her life she experienced the horse drawn carriage to spacecraft carrying men into space. She died just before the Space Shuttles began their voyages into space.

She always wore a homemade bib-type apron of small print flowers trimmed with ric-rack over her dress. Gram sewed her aprons for most of her life as she had been a good seamstress. She often did sewing to earn extra money to provide for her family. Mom said that she often made special outfits for her to wear to race meets and dances. Grandma also wore solid and sensible black shoes with a heel. In 1955, she broke her leg when she was at the sheep herd camp with my grandpa and it was stiff the rest of her life. I don't think I ever heard her complain about her stiff leg.

She loved music and was always humming a song. She loved to sing. I remember when we went to visit, my mom would often play the piano and Gram would sing. She loved the pioneer songs and often sang songs from a green pioneer songbook. I have many good memories of warm summer afternoons, listening to my mother play that old upright piano and listening to my sweet grandma singing her heart out.

My grandma belonged to the DUP - The Daughters of Utah Pioneers. I remember that when we were there she would often say, “I have DUP today,” which meant that she had a DUP meeting. Most of her friends were also members of DUP and so she really enjoyed it. One of the things she looked forward to was the 24th of July. Panguitch had a yearly celebration including a parade, chuckwagon lunch, and rodeo. The parade was a highlight for everyone. I can still recall her getting ready for the parade. She would put on a fancy pioneer dress. Every year the DUP had a float and all the ladies rode on it making up a bazooka band. My grandma played the drum. I can just see her now beating out the rhythm all the while humming away on her bazooka with all the other ladies. Those are good memories, and no 24th of July is quite the same now compared to that simple small town parade. The DUP bazooka band is a tradition that continues on. In 2009 and again in 2011, I saw the Panguitch 24th of July parade and the ladies did their best to represent the DUP in the way that has been done for as long as I can remember. I think that is fitting, my grandma would like it that way.

I always loved to go to Panguitch for the 24th of July because a lot of our family from out of town would also be there. It was always a good time laughing and enjoying being with each other. My grandma was the happiest of all to have us all there. It was always hard to leave her and go home. I knew that she would be so lonely and my mom always cried when we left.