Lillian Naomi McKinney Cooley

Lillian Naomi McKinney Cooley

Lillian Naomi McKinney Cooley, 84, passed away Friday, July 28, 2017 in Jackson, Mississippi. Memorial services will be held at Woodworth Chapel, on the campus of Tougaloo College, in Tougaloo, Mississippi on Friday, August 18, 2017 at 11:00 a.m., followed by a reception at 12:00 noon. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to Tougaloo College, 500 W. County Line Road, Tougaloo, MS 39174 or the Center for Social Entrepreneurship, 1225 Robinson Street, Jackson, MS 39203.

Lillian was born in Jackson to Robert Lee and Virginia Christmon McKinney on April 17, 1933. She began her educational journey at the Daniel Hand Elementary School on the campus of Tougaloo and subsequently Tougaloo High School. She matriculated at Spelman College, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in music. During her summer breaks at Spelman, Lillie, her given name, spent time with her aunt, a college math professor, in North Carolina. Upon one of their visits to Connecticut, she met her future husband, Bill. Upon her graduation from Spelman in 1955, she taught music in Savannah, Georgia and Columbia, South Carolina. Marrying that same year in Columbia, the couple began their twenty-year journey in the U.S. Air Force, where Bill ultimately retired at the rank of lieutenant colonel. From 1959-60, Lillian attended the University of Illinois, Champagne-Urbana, graduating with a master's degree in Library Science, which would chart her professional career. Thereafter, she worked in public and private libraries in Massachusetts, North Dakota, and New Jersey. Additionally, she spent a brief stint at Blackburn Middle School in Jackson, while Bill served a term of duty in Vietnam. Upon Bill's retirement, Lillian and her family moved to Jackson, where she continued her work in library science at Jackson State University, Millsaps College, Mississippi College School of Law and Tougaloo College. Upon her retirement as a librarian, she joined the Mississippi Consortium for International Development (MCID), a 1989-established collaboration of four Mississippi HBCUs, which managed and implemented hundreds of international exchange and development training projects. After leaving MCID, she served as vice president of business development for Systems Consultants Associates, Inc., the family's vocational training and management consulting firm. Here, she worked to improve the lives of underserved and unserved people. Until her death, Lil held ownership in the Systems Group of Companies, which she aiding in the founding and in their respective growth and success. She was a member of Woodworth Chapel for most of her adult life, having joined Mount Helm Baptist Church in more recent years.

Lil was a voracious reader, lover of the performing arts, and a willing giver, having volunteered time and money to support numerous formally organized groups, as well as individuals, including UMMC, Hospice Ministries, the Evelyn Gandy for Lt. Gov. Campaign, the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson, and the local chapter of Spelman Alumnae Association. She was an ardent supporter of the students who participated in Systems' vocational training programs and who attended the colleges at which she worked. Moreover, she was a barrier breaker, having sought equity for women and people of color in the institutions in which she worked and the communities in which she lived. And, she was a selfless soldier constantly worrying about and working to satisfy the needs of others. But by far, her biggest contribution no doubt, was her positive influence on her family and friends.

Lil, the eldest of four children, was preceded in death by her sister, Melvin McKinney Bowie and her brother, Thomas Matthew McKinney. She is survived by her husband, William M. Cooley, her daughter, Toni D. Cooley, her brother, Robert E. McKinney, her sisters in law, Thelma Cooley Robinson, Audrey Smith, and Mary Allen McKinney, her nieces, Allison Bowie Cherry (Gene), Katrina McKinney Harris (Jeff), Stacy McKinney Huddleston (Adolph), and Sheila Robinson Fleishman (Wayne), her nephew, Roscoe Robinson (Bea), and several cousins, and great nieces and nephews.

The family wishes to extend their gratitude to Erin Goseer Mitchell, Lil's college roommate and best friend, Joanne Jones, Lil's "road dawg" (companion) for the past year as she faced her bout with Alzheimer's, Ebony and Beth, 5th Floor nurses at UMMC, as well as Dr. Richard DeShazo, Nurse Jeanette Arnold and the group at the UMMC Allergy & Immunology Division for the special care they provided over the years, as well as Peoples Funeral Home. Finally, we thank the countless people in and outside the state that have called or written to express their love for the woman who lived her life as a true lady.