James Glass Cooley
James Glass Cooley, 89, who worked as the principal interior designer and buyer for Colony House furniture store, died of congestive heart failure on February 16, 2010 at Hill Haven nursing home in Commerce, Ga. He was a Washington, D.C. resident.
Mr. Cooley was born in Jefferson, Ga. He graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology and went to work for the Tennessee Valley Authority before serving in the Army Air Forces in Europe during World War II. He returned to the TVA, working in personnel classification, and in 1951 moved to Washington.
He became a civilian employee of the Navy from 1948 until 1959, spent three years in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, employed by Aramco Oil, then worked for Colony House from 1962 to 1982, when he retired.
Mr. Cooley enjoyed classical music and attended Sunday afternoon organ concerts at Washington National Cathedral. So beloved was he at his large apartment complex that he was known as "the mayor of 2800 Woodley Road."
Mr. Cooley introduced his 11 nieces and nephews and 25 great-nieces and nephews to the sights of the city, urging them to memorize the quote at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial: "I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."
Survivors include a sister and a brother.