Aug. 2, 1967 — Nov. 30, 2024
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Kelly passed away in the loving embrace of her daughter, brother, mommy and son-in-law, in the comfort of her Idaho home.
Kelly was born on Aug. 2, 1967, in Red Bluff, Calif., to parents Don and Julie Cooper. Kelly is the mother to Kelsie Walton-Clemm (Brian); grammy to Stetson Clemm; little sister to Corey Cooper (Lisa); aunt to Cody Cooper (Michele) and Tracy Cooper-Harris (Tyson); great-aunt to twins Hailie and Tyler Hoffman, Emma Harris, Kinsley and Owen Cooper; niece to Travis Welty and the unofficial wife to Tim Cocran.
The Cooper family moved to Kendrick in 1967, and stayed. Kelly started school at Juliaetta Elementary in first grade and graduated from Kendrick High School in 1985 with her sister-in-law, Lisa. She participated in basketball, FFA, Rodeo Club and 4-H Horses Showing.
Kelly was married three times; Bob Frisbee (1985-1986); father of Kelsie, Craig Walton (1988–1992); and Russell Wessman (1998-2002). After the third, she preferred her independence, with her daughter by her side, and vowed not to marry again. Then she met Tim Cocran in 2014. They never officially married, but Tim’s devotion remained steadfast.
From the moment Kelly’s feet could touch pedals she wanted to drive a truck. Her lifelong ambition started with hauling grain for the local Kendrick farmers. That ambition progressed to the founding and operating of Big K Trucking, LLC. She was known for driving a red Ford truck pulling belly dump. Kelly was a crucial attribute in the construction of several roads throughout the Northwestern states. In her career, she drove truck for many North Idaho based companies, such as Bennett Lumber, and Debco Construction. Her experiences led her to work with many industries in the area, and eventually she transitioned to hauling logs.
Her first taste of hauling logs started in her youth after a trip in Boony Baumgartner’s log truck, and now the world had come full circle. She worked for Darby Logging, Dean Logging and Lowry Logging before starting Lil Weiner Dog Trucking LLC, driving her blue Kenworth, hauling logs under a Lowry loader until 2022. In 2022, she hung up her keys just in time to become the caretaker to her newly arrived grandson, Stetson.
Kelly relished her family’s achievements. She believed her daughter, Kelsie, could rule the world, if she just set her mind to it. She was always proud and never missed a moment to tell anyone about her daughter, son-in-law, grandson and brag about her family members.
If Kelly was not washing and shining the truck she was driving, she was with family or friends hunting, camping, fishing, horseback riding or fundraising for her local search and rescue group, Nez Perce County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse. She was always in the company of one or more of her Dachshunds. Her favorite thing was sitting around a table playing board games or cards, specifically Hollywood Rummy.
When Kelly is mentioned, the first response generally is, “She is one tough little lady!” She always seemed to have a grin on her face, and a twinkle in her eye no matter her circumstance. She loved fiercely and unconditionally. A love that spread not only to her close friends and family, but to her daughter as well. Kelly would have given the shirt off her back to help the ones she loved, and “one tough little lady” Kelly most certainly was.
The family wants to thank the nurses of Elite for the amazing and compassionate care given to Kelly and her family.
A celebration of life will be held at 11:30 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 18, at the Kendrick Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall, 301 W. B St., Kendrick. Following her truck procession.
