Former Swan Valley resident excels in Army

SWAN VALLEY – Even though he was recently promoted to U.S. Army Colonel, former Swan Valley resident Matt Cooper returned to his hometown to march in the Fourth of July parade. Cooper said since there is no active military presence in Condon, youngsters don't have a role model nor an understanding of all the opportunities available to them in the military. He marched, as he has done for the past 20 years, to show Condon children that a kid from a two-room schoolhouse can work his way up whatever ladder he or she chooses to climb and that the military has some ladders with great rewards not only at the top but also along the way.

Cooper did not start out with the intention of building a career in the Army. After graduating from Seeley-Swan High School in 1987 he went to University of Montana and from there to U of M School of Law. He then spent two years practicing law, dealing with criminal as well as civil cases and even serving as a judge pro tem for the Missoula Municipal Court. Having experienced a good sampling of the possibilities his law degree opened for him, he knew the path forward meant specialization in a narrow field of practice.

In addition, having spent several summers as a fire fighter, Cooper valued the close relationship and teamwork among fellow workers, people he trusted with his life. He realized that kind of relationship was not something he was ever going to find in a law practice.

After speaking with an Army Judge Advocate General (JAG) recruiter, he realized the Army could provide all those things he was missing in civilian life.

Cooper said, "The Army pays you to know a little bit about everything under the sun. It pays you to learn and to become an expert. The chance to do all kinds of interesting things and the chance to work with great folks – the teamwork and the comradery – it's just amazing."

Along with close relationships, the life of a JAG lawyer provided Cooper with a wide range of legal challenges. He served as a military prosecutor and handled criminal cases, drug cases, courts martial, theft of Army property, homicide, as well as assisting soldiers with a variety of legal problems.

As he moved up in rank, Cooper began to take on international and operational law. When he traveled to bases in foreign countries, he needed to learn the country's laws and be able to advise his superiors on them. He also advocated for military personnel who had committed some offense and were being tried under foreign laws. In addition, he had the responsibility to make sure the United States honored its obligations under international law.

Cooper was the operational law attorney following the Sept. 11 attacks. Security on military installations suddenly became a high priority issue. He said he worked particularly with Umatilla Chemical Weapons Depot in Oregon and with bases in Hawaii.

As one example of the kind of work he did, he cited the need to establish rules of engagement: "I had to go out and train everybody who was doing guard duty on when they can use force, what kind of force, what is their jurisdiction to detain someone, etc."

Cooper said he also worked a lot in counter-terrorism and was assigned to a quick response team. When intel discovered a proposed terror attack, Cooper said he and the rest of his team had to be within 30 minutes of a ready airplane at all times.

When Cooper's unit was deployed in Iraq, he said he prosecuted a couple of courts martial there, but also joined his unit in combat.

He said of the experience, "The Army spends a lot of time and money training you for combat. I got the orders to deploy with my unit to Iraq. I went there and did my job. It was very personally fulfilling to do what I had been trained to do."

Shortly after his Iraq experience, Cooper mustered out of the regular Army and joined the National Guard to take up the position of JAG officer for the Washington National Guard. The job allowed him and his family to stay in Washington where they had established their home.Cooper has held the position for the past 14 ½ years. He has worked in support operations for Hurricane Katrina, as well as fires, floods, mudslides and other natural disasters. Often his role is to negotiate contracts with various groups to allow the operations to be carried out as smoothly as possible.

Cooper said, "You never know what you're going to be called on to do. That's one of the great things about the job, something different every single day."

On June 8, Cooper was promoted to colonel. With the promotion came a change in direction once again. He is now the United States Property and Fiscal Officer for the National Guard for the State of Washington. Cooper will be responsible for the allocation of the almost $4 billion which comes to the Washington National Guard.

Cooper said, "There are a lot of rules on how it has to be spent. And I'm personally responsible if the rules aren't followed."

He has to sign for every piece of property that is used – helicopters, airplanes, tanks right down to the rifles and the gear and all the armories. In addition, it is his responsibility to make sure the property items are being used in accordance with federal rules and training is completed according to federal requirements.

As he has with every other task the Army has assigned him, Cooper relishes the new challenge.