Ask anyone who Lisa Wheeler-Cooper was, and they’ll tell you she was full of life, loved her family and was passionate about helping others live better lives. Lisa was born November 5, 1971 in Akron, Ohio, and was the fourth and youngest child of Mrs. Julia Mae Wheeler, née Davis, and Mr. Walter Maxwell Wheeler. Lisa accepted Christ at an early age and was baptized at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Akron, Ohio under the leadership of Reverend Dr. Arthur E. Kemp.

Lisa was a vibrant, active child who was involved in many church and school activities. During her youth at Mt. Olive, she participated in several groups including singing in the choir, ushering, and attending Sunday School. Lisa remained a member of Mt. Olive for many years until moving her membership to Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in 2004. There, she served as a youth Sunday School teacher, and later the Superintendent of Sunday School/Director of Education for kids 12 and younger. Lisa remained actively involved as a faithful servant of God throughout her life.

As a young girl Lisa was in the Girl Scouts from elementary to junior high school. Also, in elementary school, you would find Lisa not only supporting her school teams as a cheerleader, but also on the field. She participated in multiple sports including playing baseball in elementary and junior high school. Lisa was an all-around athlete. While attending Buchtel High School, she was on the track team where she ran cross country and relay races. She also played basketball with the Buchtel “Lady Griffs”. As a power forward on the team, she was instrumental in leading them to win city championships in 1987, 1988 and 1989. In fact, in 1987, the team made it all the way to the state championship game. Lisa was a proud 1990 graduate of Buchtel High School.

Lisa went on to graduate from Kent State University where she majored in advertising and minored in Pan-African studies. It was there that she met her husband, Robert Cooper.

Lisa was always learning new things. She was a pursuer of education, information, new strategies and approaches. In addition to earning her Bachelor’s degree, she was in the process of pursuing a master’s degree in Education at Kent State. She also held a Diversity and Inclusion Certificate from Cornell University, and earned the UCLA/Johnson & Johnson Community Health and Advocate Management Certificate from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Lisa used her education to propel her into work that connected her to her passion of a health advocate. The majority of her adult life was spent working for the American Heart Association. She worked there for over 26 years, most recently as the executive director for Northeast Ohio which covers Akron, Canton and Youngstown. Lisa was the face of the organization and carried the message of heart health everywhere she went and to all who would listen. Her work was an extension of her very active lifestyle which included bike riding, teaching fitness classes, leading CPR clinics and more. Recently, Lisa had returned to golf, which her father introduced her to as a child. She was taking lessons at the historic Clearview Golf Course in East Canton.

Lisa was instrumental in connecting people within communities through her desire to improve healthcare. She focused on making sure minority and underserved communities had access to information on healthy eating and healthy lifestyle choices. She instituted a jump rope for heart health program in elementary schools. In 2013, Lisa was certified as a Personal Fitness Trainer by the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. She taught various kinds of exercise classes

including Zumba, Japanese-inspired Tabata workouts, and Masala Bhangra which is an Indian fitness program. In fact, Lisa featured Masala Bhangra at the Arnold in Columbus. You may even have seen her talking about fitness or representing the American Heart Association (AHA) in newspaper articles and social media, and demonstrating routines on local and national television interviews, like FOX 8, Good Morning America and the Today Show.

Lisa also worked with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® chapters in Akron and Cleveland on their Pink Goes Red campaigns in collaboration with the American Heart Association. And, in 2012 she was awarded the Ohio Commission on Minority Health’s “Shero Award” in recognition of her unwavering commitment to eliminating health disparities in underserved populations.

Lisa received many other honors and was actively engaged in community and service organizations. She served as a Community Advisory Board Volunteer for the Case Western Reserve University Comprehensive Cancer Center, and as a Care Alliance Health Center Board Member. Her awards include AHA Midwest Values in Leadership Award 2024-2025, member of Team Cleveland’s National Team Collaboration Award 2023, founding lifetime member of ATHENA Akron, a member of Leadership Akron Signature Class 41, and she was initiated into Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®, Zeta Theta Omega Chapter in 2021.

Lisa’s passion faded on Friday, April 10, 2026 following a brief illness. Lisa’s mother and father preceded her in death. She leaves to cherish her memory her loving husband Robert, her siblings Kimberly Wheeler of North Carolina, Monique “Nikki” Wheeler of Ohio, Walter “Randy” Wheeler (Queen) of North Carolina, cousin Maurice (Marla) Davis of Texas, cousin Lawrence Davis, Jr. of North Carolina, nephews Quinton (Megan) Wheeler of Ohio and Preston (Crystal) Wheeler of Arizona; nieces Chaunté Wheeler of Texas, Carmella Favor of Texas, and Jasmine Wheeler of North Carolina; five great nephews, four great nieces, along with a host of additional family, friends, co-workers and community members.