My Story … His Glory: The Life and Experience of a Bahamian Son: Havard S. Cooper Sr.

By Havard S. Cooper Sr.

From raising chickens for subsistence to owning a Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise in the Bahamas, My Story His Glory narrates the inspiring life saga of the Rev. Havard S. Cooper, a Bahamian who has risen from humble beginnings in Grand Bahama to become a highly respected citizen of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

Presented in three parts, this memoir reveals how a once-poor child overcame adversity to become a visionary, entrepreneur, successful Christian businessman and patriarch of a large, influential Bahamian family. Filled with anecdotes, Part I discusses growing up in the Bahamas as one of three boys whose father raised them after their mother died. Part II offers gems of wisdom and spiritual inspiration, while Part III provides a reflection of Bahamian cultural and historical perspectives.

Serving as a role model, Coopers memoir serves to encourage others to aspire to fulfill their God-given destinies by contributing to the economic, social, moral, and spiritual development of the cities and nations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Nov 15, 2010
• ISBN: 9781450256803

Havard S. Cooper Sr.

Havard S. Cooper Sr. was born in Smith’s Point, Grand Bahama, Bahamas. He is an ordained minister and is president of Doris Minette Holding Ltd. He has received awards and citations for his contributions to the business and civic development of the Bahamas. He and his wife Doris, Minette, have five children.

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MY STORY …

HIS GLORY

The Life and Experience of a Bahamian Son

HAVARD S. COOPER SR.

Foreword by Dr. Myles Munroe

iUniverse, Inc.

New York Bloomington

My Story … His Glory

The Life and Experience of a Bahamian Son: Havard S. Cooper Sr.

Copyright © 2010 by Havard S. Cooper Sr.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Cover Designed by Audra L. Lovely

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5678-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5679-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-5680-3 (ebk)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2010913918

Printed in the United States of America

iUniverse rev. date: 11/09/2010

ANYTHING THAT YOU DO GOOD FOR SOMEONE GIVES GLORY TO GOD.

HAVARD S. COOPER SR.

Acknowledgments

First let me give thanks to Almighty God for allowing me to write this book. Special thanks go out to my wife for her continued faithfulness to me. Minette, you have truly been a helpmeet sent from God.

I would also like to thank my children and my niece Velyn Cooper. Without their assistance, this book would not have come to fruition. You all have proven that children are indeed a blessing from the Lord.

Thankfulness is also extended to Dr. Myles Munroe for writing the Foreword. You are an inspiration in my life as you bring glory to God.

Gratitude is also extended to the Rev. Dr. J. Emmette Weir and Greg and Barbara Burrows for the compilation and editing of this work. May God continue to bless you and your families as you continue to serve Him.

And finally, thank you to each of you who have taken the time to read My Story … His Glory. May your lives be enriched by it, and may each of you be inspired to live your lives to the honour and glory of God.

The Rev. Havard S. Cooper Sr.

July 22, 2010

Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas

CONTENTS

Foreword – Dr. Myles Munroe

Introduction

PART I – FROM RAISING CHICKENS TO KFC

Chapter 1 – My Earliest Memories and My Family

Chapter 2 – Sponging with My Father

Chapter 3 – A Curse or a Blessing?

Chapter 4 – Boat Building on the Islands and Farming on the Cays

Chapter 5 – Wooden Houses, Rock Ovens, and Kerosene Stoves

Chapter 6 – Killing the Cow and Caring for Other Domestic Animals

Chapter 7 – The Stick in My Arm

Chapter 8 – Delivering Babies and After-Delivery Meals

Chapter 9 – Using Electricity, Getting the News, and Banking

Chapter 10 – Going to Nassau

Chapter 11 – Surviving World War II (1939–1945)

Chapter 12 – The Church

Chapter 13 – The Rise and Rapid Growth of Pine Ridge

Chapter 14 – Number 4 and Number 5

Chapter 15 – Making Coal

Chapter 16 – The Rapid Decline and Fall of Pine Ridge

Chapter 17 – The Beginning of a Legacy: Raising Chickens

Chapter 18 – Assisting Wallace Groves, the Founder of Freeport

Chapter 19 – The Island Market

Chapter 20 – The Bend-or-Break Speech

Chapter 21 – The Big Fight

Chapter 22 – Ownership of KFC Consolidated

PART II – GEMS OF WISDOM FROM THE REV. HAVARD S. COOPER SR.

Gem 1 – Jesus Wants You to Have More Than Enough!

Gem 2 – Think Big!

Gem 3 – Work Your Vision! Don’t Let It Die!

Gem 4 – Overcoming Obstacles

Gem 5 – A Goodly Heritage

Gem 6 – Don’t Be Afraid of Hard Work!

Gem 7 – Work Hard … Be Creative!

Gem 8 – Work Hard and Be Generous!

Gem 9 – Greed: Gateway to the Graveyard!

Gem 10 – Don’t Bury Your Talent!

Gem 11 – Learn from the Ant!

Gem 12 – Education and Vision

Gem 13 – No Time to Waste Time

Gem 14 – Don’t Be Ashamed

Gem 15 – A House Is Not Necessarily a Home!

Gem 16 – Don’t Be Afraid

Gem 17 – Give as Much as You Can, Save as Much as You Can

Gem 18 – Good Measure

Gem 19 – Don’t Look Down on Others

Gem 20 – True Friends?

Gem 21 – The Benefits of Being Alone with God

Gem 22 – Ingredients for a Successful Life

PART III – MY DARKEST HOUR; MY TESTIMONY; STORIES OLD AND NEW FROM GRAND BAHAMA; PRAYER FOR THE NATION

My Darkest Hour

My Testimony

Stories Old and New from Grand Bahama

The Good Old Days

Looking Back

Rough Weather

Mike Edden’s Sugarcane Mill

The Man Who Water-Skied Backwards

The Nine Miles Backward Walk

Visions and Prophecies

Prayer for the Nation

APPENDICES

Appendix 1 – Recognition and Awards: Rev. Havard S. Cooper Sr.

Appendix 2 – Bahamian Proverbs

Endnotes

Foreword

This erudite, eloquent, and immensely thought-provoking work gets to the heart of the possibilities of great achievement and success by anyone who is willing to capture a vision, sacrifice comfort, and dedicate himself/herself to the divine principles of life. This is not just a rags-to-riches story; it can become anybody’s story.

This is indispensable reading for anyone who wants to live life above the norm. This is a profound authoritative work that spans the wisdom of the ages and yet breaks new ground in its approach to proving that the only obstacles to success are the ones we create. This work will possibly become a classic in this and the next generation.

This exceptional work by Havard S. Cooper Sr. is one of the most profound, practical, principle-centered approaches to this subject I have read in a long time. The author’s approach to this timely issue brings a breath of fresh air that captivates the heart, engages the mind, and inspires the spirit of the reader.

It is amazing how the author leaps over complicated theological and metaphysical jargon and reduces complex theories to simple, practical principles of success that the least among us can understand. This work will challenge the intellectual while embracing the layman as it dismantles the mystery of mankind’s search for the soul and delivers the profound in simplicity.

Havard Cooper’s approach awakens in us the untapped inhibitions that retard our personal development, and his antidotes empower us to rise above these self-defeating, self-limiting factors to a life of exploits in spiritual and mental advancement.

The author also integrates time-tested precepts into each chapter, giving each principle a practical application to life and making the entire process people-friendly.

My Story … His Glory is a book where every sentence is pregnant with wisdom, and I enjoyed the mind-expanding experience of this exciting book. I admonish you to plunge into this ocean of knowledge and watch your life change for the better as you become motivated to live your story for His glory.

Dr. Myles Munroe

Bahamas Faith Ministries International

International Third World Leaders Association (ITWLA)

Nassau, Bahamas

 Introduction

This book was written to let the public know where we as a people have come from and to glorify God for His love and mercy. It is important to bear in mind that the Bahamas was not always as prosperous as it is today. Thus, whatever is recorded in this book didn’t happen overnight.

The experiences recorded in the following pages took place over the long span of years from the 1930s to the present. In this regard, let us bear in mind that Almighty God could have made the earth, land, sea, day, and night in one hour or even a second if He so desired, but He elected to do it in six days and to rest on the seventh day. And God saw that everything that He made was very good (Genesis 1:31).

I can safely say that our parents were not like parents today. Things have changed dramatically; not only in the physical, but also in the spiritual sphere. Our parents believed God, feared God, and honoured God in every aspect of their lives. Children honoured their parents, and people respected each other’s property and lives.

Today there are wars and more wars to come. It’s not the earth that’s becoming wicked; rather it’s the greedy, unfair, fearless, godless, evil-thinking men who live on earth who have corrupted themselves and caused harm and danger to their brothers and sisters, without any respect for or knowledge of God. Some even believe that they are in full control of their destinies, leaving no place for divine intervention. Remember that it was only after the great Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar had been humiliated to the point of eating grass like an ox for seven years that he came to a realization that God rules in the kingdom of men (Daniel 4:28–35).

The lesson that Nebuchadnezzar learned from that bitter experience should be a lesson for us all, but most of us are too hard-hearted and stiff-necked to learn from the mistakes of others!

The times of which I speak in this book were marked by much poverty, but they were very peaceful. The doors of our homes were open to the chickens and the birds. It was difficult to get them out once they came in. Our hearts were also open to our brothers and sisters, who were always welcome in our homes.

Bahamians in the United States of America

Yes, those times were very difficult, especially in terms of the economy. There were no jobs locally, so many people emigrated to the United States to work (some legally, many otherwise). That’s the reason why there are a lot of Bahamians and persons with Bahamian roots in the United States of America today! My father was amongst those who went to the United States on what was called the contract. Thank God my daddy came back home!

I also went to the United States. We really didn’t know specifically what we were expected to do. We