Lela Cooley

A Celebration of Life for Lela Marie Raines Cooley, 92, will be held from 5-7pm Tuesday October 21, 2025 at the Lawrence Country Club in Lawrence, KS. Light hors d'oeuvre, beer, and wine will be served.

Lela passed away on October 15, 2025 at St. Luke’s South in Overland Park, KS. She was the daughter of Lee and Eva (Rowe) Raines and was born on April 29, 1933 in Mound City, KS. She had a challenging, but great and loving upbringing as her family pitched in to help her and her sister, Nina, take care of her mom who was diagnosed with M.S. when Lela was little. Lela’s mom passed away when she was only 11 years old. Her dad took great care of his two daughters and loved them immensely, as he stepped into the role of both parents, often being the only dad at recitals.

Lela was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority at the University of Kansas and a life-long member of Chapter AZ of PEO. She graduated from the University of Kansas School of Education in 1955. She is survived by her husband, Gerald L. Cooley, her high school sweetheart. They got married on April 10, 1955, in Wichita, KS and were married for 70 years.

Following in her dad’s footsteps and loving school as a child, she taught school for 4 years at Woodlawn Elementary in Lawrence, KS. After taking a pause to raise her 2 children, Lela re-entered the education workforce as a Title I math teacher at Cordley Elementary school in Lawrence, before retiring in 2003.

She is also survived by her 2 children, Beth Millikan (husband Andy Millikan) of Overland Park and John Cooley (wife Susan Cooley) of Lenexa, as well as her four beloved grandchildren; Gabe Millikan of Kansas City, MO, Laura Millikan of Dallas, TX, Jackson Cooley (wife Iberia Cooley) of Overland Park, and Matt Cooley of Lenexa.

Lela loved having her grandkids come to Lawrence for “camp grandma” where she got to spoil them with cookies, Sylas and Maddy’s ice cream, and trips to Allen Fieldhouse. Anyone who knows her knows how seriously she took her Kansas Jayhawks, never missing any games and often knowing the players’ stats better than most. She was an avid Bridge player, which gave her a great excuse to be with her dear friends weekly. Lela led with compassion, patience, and a fierce loyalty to her loved ones.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made in Lela's name to the Myotonic Dystrophy Foundation (Myotonic Dystrophy is a disease that impacts Lela's family) and may be made via Myotonic Dystrophy Foundation - Primary Donate Page (give.myotonic.org/LelaCooley) or be sent in care of Warren-McElwain Mortuary.

For more information or to post a condolence go to warrenmcelwain.com.