SAN DIEGO — Their father is named Sidney Cooper, but in San Diego, he was known as the “Mayor of Imperial Avenue.”
Sidney helped popularize Juneteenth in San Diego, the family said it's why this disturbing situation makes it that more hurtful. Family members are troubled knowing that a person that was respected by the community, could not be buried respectfully.
It's been 22 years since Lana and Shelly‘s father, Sidney Cooper, passed away.
“He was the best father that any girl could ever ask for. He was loving and caring. He was about family,” said Lana.
His funeral services took place at Greenwood Memorial Park and Mortuary, but a shocking revelation has opened up wounds of losing their father all over again. The gravesite where his casket and remains are supposed to be buried is empty.
“This is a nightmare that we are living day to day for 24 hours a day,” said Shelly.
The Cooper sisters say they found out three months ago when they were organizing their mother Thelma Cooper’s funeral.
Thelma hoped she would be buried next to Sidney, that's when the family received the bizarre call from the management at Greenwood.
“We said to lay our mother to rest and then we’ll worry about locating my father after their service but please lay my mother to rest,” said Lana.
The Cooper family blames Greenwood. They say a corporation that's designed to honor the dead has only tormented the Coopers and disrespected their late father's memory.
“Now it makes me mourn even more because now my mother is in her grave by herself,” said Lana.
After mixed messages from Greenwood about locating remains that could possibly be Sidney's, the family has been in a legal battle with them ever since.
“Give us a DNA [confirmation] to prove that that's our father, lay him to rest next to my mother. we are not gonna accept any casket to be laid on my mother,” said Lana.
CBS 8 reached out to Greenwood Memorial Park and Mortuary to get answers on how long the site has been empty. We also asked what they are doing to locate Sidney's body.
In a written statement a spokesperson told CBS 8:
“Over 20 years ago under previous ownership and management, we recently discovered an issue with placement and are diligently working to confirm the placement of the loved one. Our hope is to reunite the loved ones as intended as soon as possible.”