Jake Cooper:  

Life A lot of things have happened since '83. I entered the AF and figured I'd stay in until I grew up or decided what I wanted to do for a living. 22+ yrs later I still wasn't sure. I was medically retired in Apr 07 due to a brain tumor. More on that later. In Mar '88 I married Cecilia Alfaro Rodriguez while stationed at Clark AB, Philippines. Our 1st child, Alex (19, attending Lander) was born there as well. After our tour in San Antonio and my last drink if alcohol, (29 Apr 93) we moved to Landtuhl, Germany. The Lord blessed us with two girls, Eryan (now 13 and Renee (9). I was also involved with some high profile events which would enable me to excel during my service. More importantly it shaped me and has me better prepared to serve the Lord. During our time in Germany we were able to visit Paris, Rome, Belgium, Luxemburg, and other sites in Europe. I spent my time coaching baseball, playing golf, and running the projectors at the base theaters. After 6+ yrs in Germany, we received orders to Kadena AB, Okinawa Japan. It was a great 7 yrs and the place where I really came to know and love my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We also adopted Cecille's nephew, Raymond (now 21). Most importantly, we started attending Maranatha Baptist Church. It was there that I realized my lost condition and that I needed to be saved. I spent many years going in and out of churches, the old "spiritual tune up". Sitting in a church doesn't make one a Christian nor does "being a good person and doing good works. I had prayed a prayer and got baptized when I was 7 but I had doubts during a missions revival and had to get things settled. I admitted that I was a sinner and asked the Lord to come into my life. What peace I have now. The Lord used my military experience and I became director of our faith based addiction program. I also served as an usher, driver for the bus ministry, taught Sunday School, and would get the opportunity to preach when our pastor was away. In Dec 05', I surrendered to full-time Christian service during a revival meeting with Dr. Tom Farrell. On 5 Jan 07 I had problems writing at work. Blew it off and went home. On 6 Jan I woke up with a killer head ache. That night I woke up and my left side felt like it was asleep, figured I slept on it wrong. On 7 Jan, I drove the church bus. When I got off the bus my limp got worse. After the service I went to the ER where an MRI showed a mass on the right side of the brain. I was admitted to the ICU and surgery was scheduled for 10 Jan 07 as I had to be taken off my blood thinner. It would have been easy to question, "why me", and grow bitter towards the Lord. I knew that God was in control and was the source of my strength so I stayed in faith. Prior to surgery I asked for the Lord's will to be done. I had no reason to fear. If the Lord was done with me then I'd be called up to Heaven. If there was more that He wanted to use me for then I'd make it. 10 months later I'm still here and getting stronger each day. Yes, there have been challenges the we've faced but in each instance the Lord has gotten us through it all. Many people have been surprised at how our family has dealt with the tumor. It's our faith and belief in Jesus Christ. I can't imagine how people deal with similar circumstances without Christ. It's been 10 months since my malignant, astrocytoma tumor was removed. I'm a case study with NIH and taking Timador chemo capsules. After 57 doses of chemo and 32 days of radiation treatment things...Expand for more