Passing on a Legacy

This is a special blog post in that it is not about me but about an individual who has invested in me. Jerry Cooper, my grandfather, is the man who introduced me to aviation. Since I was very young he would pour his aviation knowledge into me pointing out how an airplane flew or how an engine worked. He would begin giving me official flight instruction by the time I was 16 and eventually led me to obtaining my private pilot license when I was 19. About one year and a week after he soloed me he once again left me, but this time I remained on the ground as he flew off to glory. My grandfather and dear flight instructor Jerry Cooper (ATC, INST, CFI, CFII, ME, MEI, ATP) unexpectedly passed away on May 21, 2010. The last time he flew was with me at the controls of a C-150 on May 14 just before sunset, exactly one week before his death.

Jerry was a huge fan and avid reader of Terry Thompson's The Aviator's Devotional. The 29th day of the devotional is entitled "Passing on a Legacy." It speaks of all the great aviation legends and industry leaders that have shaped how we see aviation today. It also speaks of the importance of passing on our personal legacy to children and grandchildren, and that's exactly what he did. He invested in all of his children, grandchildren, and especially me by instructing me all the way through to my private pilot license. He taught his wife, three children and a granddaughter all the way up to the point of solo. I can't attempt to explain how I feel that Jerry has passed and has essentially passed down the mantle to me as being a pilot. But what I do know is he fulfilled his calling, if nothing else in my life. He got me my license, helped me to get my newsletters started to raise support for my missionary endeavors, and most recently helped me secure the job here at Epps aviation. He definitely got me started rolling and established in the aviation industry and there's no stopping now.

Terry Thompson takes his devotional one step further. He implores us to "ensure that our spiritual legacy is planted deeply in the minds and hearts of those who are following in our foot steps." If Jerry were not a pilot he would still have much legacy to pass on. He was a spiritual father to many and he ensured he passed his spiritual legacy by gifting a New Living Bible to each of his children and grandchildren with his hand-scripted favorite verses in the front page. Thompson's devotional ends with this verse:

Since my youth, O God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come. Psalm 71:17-18

Jerry never felt that he was necessarily called to missions but he had a heart for sharing the gospel just the same. He had a role in many coworkers' lives as a corporate pilot and had a huge influence on countless students he instructed. No one left a flight with Jerry without first learning about how an airplane works and second learning how large an effect God had on his life. He may not have been on the front lines as a missionary pilot but you can be assured he was watering the gospel everywhere he flew. And what better way to pass that legacy on than for his grandson and flight student to take a part of him to the mission field as a missionary pilot.