Perry Oliver Hooper Sr.

Perry Oliver Hooper, a longtime resident of Montgomery, Alabama died peacefully surrounded by his family on Sunday, April 24, 2016. He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Marilyn Yost Hooper; his four sons, Perry Oliver Hooper, Jr., (Judy); Walter Yost Hooper; Earle Conwell Hooper (Ashlee) and John Wyatt Hooper, all of Montgomery; his beloved grandchildren, Dr. Perry Oliver Hooper, III, (True) of Cleveland, Ohio; Thomas Clemet Hooper (Autumn) of Montgomery, Alabama; Davis Shaw Hooper (Hannah) of Auburn, Alabama; Eleanor Neely Hooper of Pensacola, Florida; Julia Holloway Hooper of Huntsville, Alabama; Earle Conwell “Wells” Hooper, Jr., of Montgomery, Alabama; William Oliver Hooper of Montgomery, Alabama; John Wyatt Hooper, Jr., of Birmingham, Alabama; Marilyn Conley Hooper of Birmingham, Alabama; and one great grandson, Thomas “Baby Tom” Clement Hooper of Montgomery, Alabama; and one great granddaughter, Charlotte Mackenzie Hooper, of Cleveland, Ohio.

Chief Justice Perry Oliver Hooper, Sr., (retired), a loving, warm, caring, sweet person, was born on April 8, 1925 in Birmingham, Alabama, the son of Ernest and Mary Lou Perry Hooper. He attended public schools in Birmingham, Alabama graduating from Ramsay High School. Following High school Justice Hooper served in the United States Marine Corp for two and a half years.

After his military service, he attended Birmingham Southern college for two years and completed his education at the University of Alabama where he was a member of Sigma, Alpha Epsilon Fraternity and obtained a B.S. and Juris Doctor Degrees.

Justice Hooper briefly practiced law in Birmingham before moving to Montgomery to serve as Staff Attorney to Justice Davis Stakely from 1953 to 1956. On May 16, 1953 He married Marilyn Yost, the daughter of Walter and Eva Futch Yost of Montgomery. Justice Hooper then entered private practice and was soon joined by Maultsby Waller until December, 1964. In November 1964, Justice Hooper successfully ran for Probate Judge of Montgomery County as a Republican. He was the first Republican elected to that post in the 20th Century. He was re-elected in 1970 and was elected President of the Probate Judges Association by his peers across the state.

Justice Hooper served as Probate Judge from 1965 until his election, again as a Republican, as Circuit Judge in 1974, and served there until retiring in 1983. During his last term as Circuit Judge, he was chosen by his fellow judges on the bench to serve as presiding Circuit Judge. After ten years in private practice Judge Hooper decided to seek the office of Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. On November 8, 1994 Perry Hooper, Sr. was elected Chief Justice in a Historic Election. An eleven-month legal battle over absentee ballot procedures ensued, but Hooper prevailed in Federal Court and was sworn in as Chief Justice on October 20, 1995. He was the first Republican in Alabama history to be elected by the people of Alabama as Chief Justice. Justice Hooper retired in January 2001, having served on numerous national judicial committees for the Alabama Supreme Court. In January 1998, Chief Justice and Mrs. Hooper hosted a conference of all Chief Justices’ nationwide in Point Clear, Alabama. Justice Hooper also received The Howell Heflin Award for Judicial Excellence in 2001. He was an active member of the National Center for State Courts, The Association of Chief Justices and a member of The American Bar.

Prior to his election as Chief Justice, he was a prominent figure on the Republican National scene, serving as the National Committee Man for Alabama on the Republican National Committee from 1972 to 1996. He served on the Republican National Committee Executive Council and as Chairman of The Rules Committee. During his service he worked closely with Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Bush.

Chief Justice Hooper was an active church member and a deacon. He taught Sunday school for over 40 years and sang in the choir. The Hooper’s are active members of First United Methodist Church. An activist in the community, Justice Hooper undertook a number of significant projects. He served two stints as PTA President when his children were in public school. He coached peewee football and youth baseball where he was active in both the Southeastern and Southern Youth Baseball Leagues serving as President of both. In 1968 Justice Hooper was presented the YMCA Man of the Year Award, in recognition of his outstanding community services performed for the Youth of Montgomery. Justice Hooper was a member and past President of the Capital City Kiwanis Club. He was also a member of the Montgomery Historical Society and was a Mason for many years.

In his last years on earth he had a wonderful caregiver named Dorothy Brinson, better known as Ms. D. She truly loved Justice Hooper and poured out her heart for him.

The funeral service for Chief Justice Perry Hooper will be held at The First United Methodist Church in Montgomery, Alabama on Thursday, April 28, 2016 at 11:00 AM. The family will receive friends an hour and a half prior to the service. Officiating the service will be Dr. Karl Stegall, Dr. Lawson Bryan and Reverend John Blount. The burial will be held at Greenwood Cemetery, immediately following the service. Pallbearers will be his grandsons. Honorary pallbearers will be John “Bubba” Trotman, Rube Thornton, Jack Noble, John Dale, Justice Hugh Maddox, George Jordan, James N. Walter, Sr., Jack Campbell, Dubo Harper, Dudley Griffin, Bowen Hill, Ken Upchurch, Justice Gorman Houston, Dick Hodges, Richard Lawrence, John Napier, Jere Longshore, Tommy Gallion, Frank Gregory, Mark Anderson Lee Sims and Chief Justice Perry Hooper’s “Patrick Henry lawyers.” In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The First United Methodist Church of Montgomery, 2416 West Cloverdale, Montgomery, AL 36106 or to one’s own favorite charity.

The family will receive friends from 5:00 to 7:00 at their home on 3191 Thomas Avenue, on Wednesday, April 27, 2016.