FEATURE - Remembering Tony Cooper

With the passing of Anthony John (Tony) Cooper, 1934 - 2024, our Sunshine Coast, family and friends as well as national and international clients, have lost a true visionary who was innovative and creative from an early age.  

By Donna Klease

Born in London England, Tony moved to Jersey in the English Channel, with his widowed mother in 1952. Tony married his life partner Marion in 1954 and welcomed two daughters Shiralee and Tina and adopted son Richard. 

Tony’s love of colour, fashion, designing and sewing skills developed, enabling him to pursue his passion by opening a bespoke men’s store called High Style Menswear in St Helier, Jersey. 

In 1967 the family relocated to Brisbane, and with Tony’s love of interior decorating and colour foremost in his mind he opened High Style Interiors in The Gap, Brisbane in the early ‘70s.  

As Tony was one to not sit still, coupled with his extraordinary vision, he excelled at many different business opportunities including renovation of the Pacific Paradise Motel;  developing a modern caravan park; the Black Pot Cafe, and negotiating with Ampol to open a new Service Station.

Tony also established Viscount Stud and bred horses with their Arab stallion while living in Eumundi, and formed “NAGs” Northcoast Active Riders Group, with Tony and Mr Grimes cleaning out the Showground yards for horses, dressage and competitions. 

Daughter Tina was very successful in competitions and while in the Maleny area looking at a horse, they discovered the beautiful Hinterland.

Tony bought and operated an existing business Sunskate in Caloundra, and built and operated Westworld Skate on Windsor Rd Burnside, Nambour. Tony was an excellent skater. Tony and Marion were interviewed about Westworld on radio by ABC Sunshine Coast in 2019.

If that wasn’t enough, Tony bought and operated The Deep Skating in Albany Creek, North Brisbane which was run by Tina, their daughter, and is now the last remaining skating rink in Brisbane.

While the family was living in Mapleton, they bought a few vacant blocks of land near the Mapleton School. Tony and Marion’s vision for the blocks were for a tourist attraction of replica historical buildings to be called “Old Mapleton Town”. 

Unfortunately there were a number of objections, so they turned their disappointment into building a local business complex with a cafe “Cherries on the Hill”, “Grandmas Cupboard”, a bakery, a nursery, a ceramic studio and the Service Station. Today this is now the IGA and BP Service Station owned and operated by the Anderson Family. 

Over the many years prior, Tony’s love of colour and psychology had him researching long and hard until he found his life’s purpose of sharing the cosmic code. 

In Mapleton this dream became a reality and would become available around the world. After spending several years travelling to the UK teaching, Tony and Marion established a business called Aura Light at Unicornis, Mapleton in 1991. 

Aura Light was based on a colour consultation system and a wide range of colourful aromatic essences. The products are based on a combination of essential oils, crystal and flower essences, vegetable food and natural dyes, herb energies, spring water and alcohol preservative.  

A major dream of Tony’s was achieved in September 1999. After research and a lifetime of experience he published Colour The Cosmic Code. This book explains Tony’s understanding about the relationship between colour and healing and self-transformation. He shares his ideas about how colour can be used for personal and planetary healing and self-empowerment. A key foundation is that light is the source of colour, and that colour is a gift of light. 

Aura Light is now distributed and operated by daughter Shiralee Cooper and available from her shop, Illume Creations, in Montville. Inside Illume you also will find international artist and daughter Tina’s stunning and vibrant coloured hard-blown glass art, as well as at her studio in Montville. 

Tony was so proud of his two daughters, both with different strengths and their own passions in life as well as inheriting his strong work ethic. Marion gave Tony her unending support and help in his numerous endeavours, as well as arranging and touring with Tony as he was invited to speak to numerous groups and lecturing tours around the world. 

Tony and Marion were wonderful supporters of their local community as they lived in both Mapleton and Montville at different times, with Tony designing and building six homes. Substantial monetary donations were given to the Mapleton and Montville Schools over that time. Tony attended a P&C Meeting at the Montville School and stressed the importance of music for children. This was approved with Tony buying the guitars so that the children could learn. Tony and Marion were official guests to Montville State School’s 125th anniversary in recognition of their ongoing support.

At the Mapleton Hall, Tony was very active with other community members painting the interior of the hall. Both Marion and Tony attended the hall’s monthly meetings and participated in any of the activities while running their businesses.  

In 1985 Marion helped plant a memorial tree with Eddie De Vere (Ex Chairman of Maroochy Shire) and Bob Williams (Trustee of the Mapleton Hall). Tony and Marion supported their local community by generously donating to the newly formed Mapleton Country Market with professional new signs and custom flags arranged.  

Tony’s wish was that the market be successful and to be enjoyed by the community as had the markets at the Lilypond’s many years prior. The ongoing support by Tony and Marion to the Country Market over the years has been appreciated and with sincere gratitude, the Convenors Paula and Donna thank them.

The community thanks Tony for his unwavering dedication and commitment to his community, and for leaving us with his life’s visions.