Veteran home inspector James "Forrest" Cooper, of Somerset, was called home to his resting place Friday, February 5, 2010.

     Cooper, 61, was killed in a head-on collision about 7:30 a.m. on Highway 461 at the intersection with Tommy Road , about 10 miles outside Somerset.  He was pronounced dead on the scene, the Pulaski County Sheriff's Department said  Saturday.

     The driver of the other vehicle, Joseph A. Hughes, 18, was taken to Lake Cumberland Regional Hospital.  He was driving a green 1995 GMC pickup truck southbound on Hwy. 461.  His condition is not known.

     Forrest was driving his well-known '97 Mercury northbound on Hwy. 461 when the tragic accident occurred.  There had been heavy rain in the area.

     The cause of the wreck had not been determined at press time and no charges had been filed.  An accident reconstruction team was at work.  The road was closed for several hours following the crash.  That part of Hwy 461 had been straightened out several years ago to eliminate dangerous curves.

     Forrest was one of those men who made you proud to be a home inspector.  He always gave more than he got.  Did he ever write an inspection report good enough to tick off some seller or listing agent?  Youbetcha.  He also fought the introduction of pay-to-play agency "Preferred Provider" lists in the Somerset area.

     He was an original member of the Kentucky Board of Home Inspectors (KBHI), appointed by Gov. Fletcher in 2005.  He was part of the crew that accomplished the nearly impossible job of writing and enacting the first set of regulations to license home inspectors in Kentucky in a time crunch measured in months.  Though the law only called for quarterly meetings, and paid $35 per day for KBHI members, Forrest drove the three-hour run from Somerset to Frankfort every month to get the job done.  Thanks to the hard work of Forrest and that start-up Board, home inspector licenses went out on schedule July 1, 2006. 

     Forrest gave back to our profession in many other ways too.  He was a wonderful teacher of Kentucky building code standards.  He taught codes to inspectors out of his passion for it, for free, while he served on the KBHI.  He helped passs the original KBHI Code of Ethics.  When Lorri, became the first woman President, he was on the Board of Directors of the Kentucky Real Estate Inspectors Association, Inc.  (Lorri also is PLI's President.)  His spirit lives on in the lives of the countless home inspectors he taught and touched.

     "People say Cooper was known for always looking out for property owners and making sure their homes were built with quality materials," local WKYT-TV reporter Phil Pendelton reported.

     "He was always nice to me and helped me with things," commented Evan Massey, who lived next door to Forrest and his mother.

     "He was a very futuristic thinker..talking about planning and zoning..homes inspected early," said Jack Keeney of the Somerset-Pulaski Co. Chamber of Commerce in the report.  "A sad day in our community to lose someone like that," said Keeney.

     Forrest owned Cooper Property Inspections, Inc., which served central and south central Kentucky.  He became an ASHI inspector in 2003. 

   Visitation will be Monday, Feb. 8 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the chapel of Somerset Undertaking & Crematory.
   A celebration of life will be held Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 11 a.m. at the chapel of Somerset Undertaking & Crematory.

     He knew houses inside and out.  Today, Kentucky is down one great home inspector.  Now he's in the great house on the other side.  We will miss him.