Dr. Joseph R. Cooper, age 64, of Essex Fells, New Jersey, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Friday, October 26, 2012 after a brief illness, at Harlem Hospital in New York City, NY. Dr. Cooper was a respected, committed and loving man. He was raised in a Christian home where family, pride, diligence and education became the backbone of his daily life due to his upbringing by his parents, Naomi Cooper and the late Albert Cooper. Education had always been an essential part of his life. Being an intellectual by nature, his early pursuit of knowledge helped him excel in elementary school to the point where he was chosen to attend Mather Academy, an elite high school in Camden, South Carolina for the intellectually gifted. Upon graduation from high school he attended Bethune-Cookman College; he furthered his studies at Atlanta University in GA and then earned his Medical Degree at Meharry Medical College, specializing in ophthalmology. He then moved to New York, New York to complete his medical residency. He was a resident ophthalmologist at several hospitals including Columbia University Hospital, St. Mary's Hospital, Saint Barnabas, Saint Michael's, Our Lady of Mercy and Harlem Hospital, to say a few. Dr. Cooper had a private practice with several locations, one in Orange, NJ and Newark, NJ and additional practices throughout New York City and Bronx, NY. In addition to all his hard work with his practice and surgery, he also taught at Columbia University and sat on the board of many medical associations throughout the years, most notably the Caribbean Medical Mission of New Jersey and the National Medical Association. He was also brother of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated. Everyone who knew Joe knew that he had a very warm sense of humor and loved fishing and traveling. He was a humanitarian and a philanthropist by nature. A fate would have it, the week before his passing, Dr. Cooper was I Belize offering his medical services to those in need. Joseph Cooper rarely needed more than a few words to express himself, but it was his presence that often left those around him exactly what he meant. He leaves behind to cherish his loving memories; two sons, Tarique and Sean Cooper; his mother, Naomi Cooper, a brother; Aaron D. Cooper; one sister-in-law, Jan Cooper and a host of close nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. Dr. Joseph Cooper was preceded in death by his father Albert Cooper and his sister Lois Cooper Jones.