By DEREK NOEHREN
North Platte Telegraph
Gary Cooper was the first and only gymnastics coach North Platte High School ever had, creating the program in 1966 and coaching until 2002.
Cooper, 73, died Dec. 13 in a Denver hospice, leaving behind his wife, Kay; their son, Ryan, a former gymnast at North Platte; and a multitude of adoring friends and pupils.
“I’ll just always remember those piercing blue eyes, big smile and that toothpick always hanging out of his mouth,” said Marissa Geier-Moats, a gymnast under Cooper from 1995 to 1999. “He was like a second father to me and was there for all the girls. He was our coach, but also formed relationships and bonds with us.”
Originally from Illinois, Cooper attended college and was a gymnast at Fort Hays State in Kansas, where he met Kay. They were married for 51 years.
“That was a very eventful time,” Kay Cooper said. “We were just young newlyweds, and we came to North Platte so Gary could start the gymnastics program.”
Cooper coached boys gymnastics from 1966 until 1991, when lack of participation at other schools and the emergence of club gymnastics caused the program to fold. Cooper coached the girls team from 1981 to 2002 and also coached track and field and tennis, as well as teaching physical education.
However, gymnastics is where he most made his mark, taking the upstart program to four state runner-up finishes in 1969, ’74, ’75 and ’77.
The feat was that much more impressive, given that many of the Omaha and Lincoln schools had gymnasts with more experience and year-round training, whereas North Platte had a roster almost exclusively made up of first-time gymnasts.
That was the case for Steve and Tommy Vieyra, who further put North Platte gymnastics on the map. Steve became the school’s first state champion gymnast in 1971, followed by a state title by Tommy in 1973.
Tommy Vieyra’s path to gymnastics was winding, but a prime example of Cooper’s impact and legacy.
“I was getting into trouble and started doing drugs when I was 14 years old at Madison Middle School,” Tommy Vieyra said. “I was a talented multisport athlete, but kept quitting sports because I had a bad attitude. Coach Cooper straightened my attitude out, and we had a tight bond and remained friends long after he coached me.”
Kay saw firsthand how much Cooper’s relationships with his gymnasts meant.
“The thing I keep thinking about is that he genuinely cared for those kids,” Kay Cooper said. “He really tried to take kids that were headed in the wrong direction and straighten them out.”
Although Cooper had a big heart, he was also a fierce competitor and motivator.
“He was such a driven guy,” Geier-Moats said. “He always pushed you and knew you could do things that even you didn’t think were possible. If you told him you couldn’t do something, he’d give you this intense stare with one arm crossed over the other. He truly believed in us and wanted us to succeed.”
There will be a celebration of life for Gary Cooper at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Quality Inn and Suites with a reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in his name for future designation. Online condolences may be made at adamsswanson.com.
Reprinted with permission