Kay (Opal) Cooper died peacefully of natural causes on Thursday, September 18, 2014, at the age of 85 at Capital Health Regional Medical Center in New Jersey. Kay was a loving mother to Michael and Karen and grandmother to much-adored grandson Erik. Born March 31, 1929, in Rowan County, she was the daughter of Luther Cooper and Dovie Dickerson Cooper. Kay graduated from Berea College and moved to New York in the 1950's. During the race to develop a vaccine for the Polio virus, she worked as a medical research assistant at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut, later choosing to settle in Wayne, Pennsylvania, to raise her family. She was always a passionate reader and loved studying; when her children left home, she attended Bentley University in Massachusetts and became an avid environmental and community activist. A memorial graveside service will be held at Lee Cemetery on Sunday, November 9, 2014, at 2 p.m. Anyone who knew her during her childhood is most welcome to attend. Northcutt & Son Home for Funerals in Morehead is caring for local arrangements. Funeral: Sunday, November 9, 2014, at 2 p.m. Interment: Lee Cemetery