BBBTV12 Serving Anderson, Roane, and Morgan Counties
Lisa Cooper Vermillion, age 67, of Oak Ridge, TN, went home with her Savior, Jesus Christ, on April 17, 2026, after a short battle with pancreatic cancer.
Lisa was born June 14, 1958, in Knoxville, TN, and graduated from Powell High School in 1976. She went on to work at Y-12 National Security Complex, where she met her husband, Tony, in the cafeteria. She asked him to marry her on their first date, but he said he’d have to think about it. After a short courtship, he asked her to marry him, and they wed on June 19, 1982, only four months after their first date. Lisa and Tony were married for almost 44 years and raised three daughters together.
Lisa was a Registered Nurse, graduating from Pellissippi State Community College in 1997 with Honors. She worked at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge in the Emergency Room for many years, then in Cardiac Rehab and Same-Day Surgery before her retirement in 2020. Her patients loved her for her warm presence, confidence, knowledge, and her ability to connect with each person she treated. Lisa never met a stranger and made conversation everywhere she went. She was genuinely interested in other people and loved asking questions. If you came to her house, you were welcomed with a smile and a meal and treated like family. Lisa especially loved being a Nana to her six grandchildren, camping in the Great Smoky Mountains, and reading a book by the beach. Above all else, she loved her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
She was a member of Grace Baptist Church of Oak Ridge and a dedicated member of Bible Study Fellowship.
Lisa is preceded in death by her father, Edward Nelson Cooper.
She is survived by her husband, James “Tony” Vermillion; daughters, Sara (Chris) Waynick; Katherine (Jacob) Belk; Natalie (Pavel) Lutsenko; grandchildren, Amelia, Caleb, Luke, and Hannah Waynick, and Lia and Judah Belk; mother, Iva June Crews; sister, Jeanna Crews; brothers, Raymond (Tanya) McCarter, David (Michelle) Cooper, and Edward Cooper, Jr.; and many other family and friends who will miss her dearly.
The family will be receiving friends on Saturday, April 25, from 10 am to 12 pm at Grace Baptist Church of Oak Ridge. Memorial service will immediately follow at 12 pm, with Pastor Bryan Thomas officiating, then a graveside service at 2 pm at Anderson Memorial Gardens. The Nurse’s Honor Guard ceremony will be conducted by East Tennessee Nurse Honor Guard.
Donations in Lisa’s memory may be directed to Pilots for Christ – Tennessee Chapter at www.pfctn.com.
