When he started picking cotton at the age of five, Billy Gene Cooper knew that he would have to work harder than most people during his lifetime to overcome challenges. While he has faced poverty, discrimination, unemployment and health problems, Cooper has focused on finding ways to help others. 

At the age of 24, Cooper lost his job when he was diagnosed with epilepsy. He and his wife had just purchased a home and were expecting their first child. He was discouraged and feared he wouldn’t be able to work in the future but his wife encouraged him to participate in vocational rehabilitation. Through that process he met Anna McQuerter, who told him she could help him reach his goals. “For four years, she mentored me. When I had a problem, I could just show up at her office and she would help,” Cooper explained. “She was one of the first people who said ‘yes’ to me and I decided I wanted to be like her.”

After earning a bachelor’s degree, Cooper worked for 28 years as a workforce development specialist guiding others in their journey to success. “I believe a person’s past doesn’t always determine who they are going to be in the future,” Cooper said. “I wanted to get to know each person and let them know they mattered.” His efforts earned him the honor of Missouri’s Workforce Development Professional of the Year.

In addition to a long professional career, Cooper has been a dedicated volunteer in the community. He and his wife, Dora, were named 2010 Volunteers of the Year by Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts. He has volunteered for 31 years welcoming patrons to shows at the theater. 

He also volunteers at the Gillioz Theater, a place that has special meaning to him because he met his wife there. They were both sophomores at Central High School and began dating right away. The relationship caused problems for Cooper at work and school because Dora was white. “We had a hard time,” he said. “At that time, it was just not acceptable for people of different races to be together.”

The couple has been married for more than 50 years, and Cooper said he tries to maintain a positive attitude about the challenges he has faced. “People were just trying to maintain the status quo. I have no anger because I realized that no matter what happened in the past, we can move on and make the best of the present instead of being angry for the rest of our lives.”

Cooper does his part to be a positive force by focusing on helping others. Even though he is currently battling cancer, he cares for an elderly friend. He and his wife also raised their niece who had significant medical needs, including brain surgery. 

All the while, he made time to coach and mentor young athletes through the Boys and Girls Clubs for 40 years. “I love kids and I love sports. There is nothing like taking a group of kids who don’t know each other and may never have played a sport and teaching them to become a team,” Cooper explained.

Standing on the Hillcrest High School campus in August 2020, Denise Fredrick experienced a full-circle moment. As a member of the Springfield Public Schools Board of Education, she was celebrating the beginning of a $25 million dollar renovation to her alma mater. She couldn’t help but think about being a student there in the 1970s and how her amazing teachers inspired her to follow a path that led to this and many other high points in her life and career.

“Their positive influence extended far into my future by inspiring my career choice to become an educator and in general, my overall outlook on life,” Fredrick recalls. “I attribute many of my achievements to the encouragement and guidance I received from these great teachers.”

Fredrick joined SPS in 1984 as a science teacher at Kickapoo High School. She wanted to inspire her students to love learning and strive for their goals just like her teachers had done.

She distinguished herself as an outstanding educator and received multiple honors including: SPS Teacher of the Year, National Milken Educator award, Missouri State University Outstanding Young Alumni and Science Teachers of Missouri Presidential Citation.

These awards are meaningful to Fredrick but she said relationships with students are her greatest reward. “My favorite aspect of teaching is when former students tell me I made a difference in their life. Each time this happens, I consider it to be one of my greatest personal and professional accomplishments,” said explained.

After serving as a classroom teacher for 16 years, Fredrick applied her skills and knowledge to positively impact students as a district leader in the areas of curriculum, federal programs, accountability and quality improvement until she retired in 2008 

While she enjoys playing golf and relaxing at the lake, Fredrick wanted to stay involved in the community. Friends encouraged her to apply her wealth of experience in public education to serving on the school board. She was elected in 2011 and served for 12 years, including seven years as president or vice president. 

“This community’s willingness to allow me to serve for four terms and the confidence of board members to trust me as a leader allowed me to contribute to significant work on behalf of our students and staff,” Fredrick said. 

The passage of two bond proposals, which funded $388 million in improvements at schools districtwide, was one of the most significant. 

In January 2023, Fredrick helped cut the ribbon to celebrate the completion of the Hillcrest renovation. Reconstruction of Reed Academy, where she also attended as a student, will be completed in 2026. “Seeing this investment in improving every school in the district, especially our northside schools, makes me proud of our school district and our community,” Fredrick said. 

Her advocacy on behalf of children and her community doesn’t stop with SPS. Fredrick has been recruited to lead as a member of the 2024 United Way Campaign Cabinet and the advisory board for Missouri State University’s McQueary College of Human and Health Services. She has also volunteered with Springfield’s Citizens Commission on Community Investment, Greene County Domestic Violence Board, Mayor’s Commission on Children and Missouri Success-Ready Student Work Group.