April 27--PICAYUNE -- Edward Louis Parker and Nancy Cooper will be remembered as a caring couple who would go out of their way to help others.
Early Saturday morning, Parker, 65, and his girlfriend, Cooper, 29, died in a house fire along with their 6-month-old son, Jeremiah Parker Cooper. Pearl River County coroner Derek Turnage said they died of smoke inhalation.
"We hung out all the time," said Parker's sister Pearl Ducre. "Our mother is 100 years old and every day, he came to feed her cats and chickens for her and take care of her.
"He's going to be so missed by everybody around here because he was such a helper."
Along with their brother Calvin Dees, Ducre and Parker helped take care of their mother, Katie Mae Dees.
Parker's nephew, the Rev. Brian Dees, said he was the ultimate handyman who could do a little bit of everything.
"He was excellent at doing it all," Brian Dees said. "He could build a house, roof it and shingle it and do the plumbing, wiring and cement work. He did it all."
Dees said Parker, who served in the Army in Vietnam, also had a knack in the garden.
"He had a green thumb with anything from vegetables to fruits," he said. "Just anything you put in the ground, it was going to sprout. He could grow anything. He had the sweetest fruits."
Ducre said Cooper was wonderful to be around.
"She was a sweet young lady," she said. "Her heart was good. She was a very loving person."
Jason Hunt of the Picayune Fire Department said all three fire stations responded to the call at 708 Bennett Street about 1 a.m.
Hunt said the wood-frame house was engulfed in flames when firefighters responded. Much of it was destroyed, as were two vehicles in the carport.
Turnage said Parker and Cooper lived in the home together with their son.
Picayune firefighter Dennis Beech said the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Funeral arrangements had not been finalized as of press time.
Justin Mitchell, Sun Herald web producer, contributed to this report.
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