The Reluctant General

An autobiography of Brigadier General Billy R. Cooper, whose military career has taken him across the United States, to Germany and Vietnam.

Brigadier General Billy R. Cooper was born in 1948 in Dallas, Texas, and graduated from Franklin D. Roosevelt High School. He received an associate's degree from the University of the State of New York, a bachelor's degree in education from Cameron University in 1977, and a master s in education from Georgia State University.

Commissioned through Officer Candidate School in December 1968, he is a graduate of the Field Artillery Officer Advanced Course, the Command and General Staff College and the National War College. His military career has taken him across the United States,to Vietnam, Germany and the Persian Gulf. Of his 33 years in the Army, 11 were spent at Fort Sill, OK.

Cooper's assignments include Training Officer, 1st Basic Combat Training Brigade, Fort Lewis, WA; Forward Observer, then Executive Officer, Battery A, 1st Battalion, 21st Artillery, 1st Calvary Division, Vietnam; Artillery Tactics Instructor, U.S. Army Field Artillery School, Fort Sill; S-1/adjutant, 1st Battalion 22nd Field Artillery, then Commander, Battery C, 1st Battalion, 22d Artillery, 1st Armored Division and Deputy Installation Coordinator, Pinder Barracks, 1st Armored Division, Germany.

After serving as Assistant Professor of Military Science at Albany State College in Albany, GA, he returned to Fort Sill as a Field Artillery Staff Officer, Staff and Faculty Battalion, then Operation s Officer, 214th Field Artillery Brigade. Next, he served as a Systems Analyst at U.S. Army Material Systems Analysis Activity, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, then Commander, 2d Battalion, 1st Field Artillery, 1st Armored Division, Germany.

He was Senior Operations Officer, and later, Assistant Deputy Director for Operations, National Military Command Center, the Joint Staff, Washington, D.C. in the Pentagon. Again returning to Fort Sill, he was Training and Doctrine Command Systems Manager for Fire Support Command, Control and Communications Systems in the Field Artillery School and later commanded the 214th Field Artillery Brigade, III Corps Artillery. His next assignment was Chief, Fire Support Division and Assistant Director of Requirements, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations on the Army Staff in the Pentagon.

After promotion to Brigadier General he was assigned to the United States Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base, FL with duty in the Persian Gulf and the Horn of Africa as the Joint Rrear Area Coordinator. His final assignment was as Deputy Commanding General US Army Recruiting Command at Fort Knox, KY.

Following retirement from active Army service he served as Director of two different job corps centers (Cleveland, OH and Morganfield, KY) for nine years.