By MELANIE POOLE / Special to the Reporter

The Veteran of the Week is sponsored by the National Veterans Shrine and Register of Honor at the American Village — honoring America’s veterans and telling the stories of their service and sacrifice for the cause of liberty.

“The American Village is pleased to join the Shelby County Reporter in recognizing Lawrence Lee Cooper as Veteran of the Week,” American Village founder and CEO Tom Walker said. “He is representative of the hundreds of thousands of Alabamians who have risked it all for the sake of our country and its freedom. To all veterans we owe a debt we can never fully repay.”

Visit the website, Veteransregisterofhonor.com, today and add your loved ones to the Register of Honor. Help us honor, recognize, respect and remember our country’s veterans.

Here are highlights about this week’s Veteran of the Week: Lawrence Lee Cooper.

Larry was born in Klamath, Oregon in 1940, and currently lives in Portland with his wife Elaine. They have been married over 50 years. They have one daughter and three grandchildren that live in Helena, Alabama. While serving in the Coast Guard from 1960 to 1964, Larry was stationed on two LORAN Stations (Long Range Aid to Navigation), two Coast Guard Cutters and manned lighthouses. He served on the Alaskan Fishing Patrol monitoring the Japanese and Russian whaling fleets. He achieved the rank of Electronics Technician 2^nd Class. Many of Larry’s fondest memories come from the time he served in the Coast Guard.

In His Own Words: “Everybody should have a chance to serve in the military. It is good for you to do something for your country. You get to grow up and see a little of the world.”