lest we forget

COOLEY, MONTE RAY

Rank / Branch:

CORPORAL (POSTHUMOUS), U. S. ARMY

Date Of Birth:

1947-10-07

Country Of Loss:

SOUTH VIETNAM

Status:

HOSTILE, MULTIPLE FRAGMENT WOUNDS

Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground:

GROUND

Other:

NOT MARRIED

Unit:

101ST AIRBORNE DIVISION

Date Of Loss:

1968-03-18

Loss Coordinates:

BINH DUONG

Catagory:

BODY RETURNED

Awards & Decorations:

SEE BIO

VETERAN HAGI0GRAPHY

COOLEY, MONTE RAY, CORPORAL, U.S. ARMY, KERMIT, WINKLER COUNTY, TEXAS

AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

PARACHUTE WINGS, COMBAT INFANTRYMANS BADGE, BRONZE STAR WITH V DEVICE, PURPLE HEART, GOOD CONDUCT MEDAL, NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE MEDAL, VIETNAM SERVICE MEDAL, VIETNAM CROSS OF GALLANTRY WITH PALM, VIETNAM CAMPAIGN MEDAL

BIOGRAPHY

Monte Ray Cooley, nicknamed "Bubba" by his sisters, was a paratrooper with the 82nd and then the 101st Airborne. But his first experience with a parachute was when he was ten years old. He took one of his mother's large silk handkerchiefs, tied it at the four corners, and held it over his head as he jumped from a water tower. To his mother's amazement, not a bone was broken.
Born in San Angelo Oct. 7, 1947, he grew up in Mentone, Pecos, Culberson County, Carlsbad, NM, and was graduated from Kermit High School in 1966. He attended Odessa College after graduation. While in high school, he was a Golden Gloves fighter for the Kermit Boys Club in 1965 and 1966, winning the Sportsmanship Trophy at the 19th and 20th Annual Regional Golden Glove Tournaments in Odessa, the only fighter to win the honor twice.
Monte enlisted in the Army after attending Odessa College. He completed basic training and AIT at Fort Gordon, Georgia and then completed jump school at Fort Benning. He was initially assigned with the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, then assigned to the 3rd Brigade of 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Kentucky as they were mobilizing for Vietnam. He was assigned to a LRRP (Long Range Reconnaissance Force), squad with Headquarters and Headquarters Company.
Monte was killed March 18, 1968, when he rushed forward into enemy fire in an attempt to rescue a wounded comrade. He was assigned to the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, at the time of his death. He had been in Vietnam since Dec. 6, 1967.
Monte was buried with full military honors in the Kermit Cemetery in Kermit, Texas. He was survived by his parents, Mr and Mrs. Forrest Cooley and his three younger sisters, Kettisha Ann, Ree and Virginia. His father passed away in 1991 and his mother in 2009. They are buried next to Monte.