Rebecca Jo Copple

Rebecca Jo Copple (nee Rombach) died on 12/31/2020 in Bristol, RI, due to COVID-19.  Becky was born in Iowa City, IA on January 5th 1934 to Lucille Margaret Perdue and Peter (Pinchas) Rombach.  The oldest of 5 siblings, she grew up mainly in Denver, CO.  While getting her teaching degree at UNC Greeley, she met a graduate student, Rock Copple.  They married on June 2 1956 in a double wedding (with her sister Ruth marrying Terry Branson).  
     
Rock’s college teaching eventually took them to Billings, MT, where they raised two sons, Nathan and Ben.  Becky taught at Lewis and Clark Junior High and worked as a paralegal for the Crowley law firm.  Becky and Rock loved exploring the world — they lived in Japan for two years and visited Turkey, Mexico, China, and many places in Europe.  Retirement found her very active in the Billings Friends of the Library program as well as the Yellowstone Art Museum, where she was a volunteer researcher.  
     
After Rock died in 2010, Becky moved to Barrington, RI to be near Ben and his family.  She continued to do volunteer library work there, and with her friend Maynard Shusman started a news bulletin for their retirement community. But as her Parkinson’s and arthritis made it increasingly hard to stay mobile, she moved into Saint Elizabeth Manor for the last year of her life.
     
Becky’s family and friends remember her as endlessly curious, usually smiling, and occasionally sassy.  She was part of the Unitarian fellowship in Billings but also explored her Jewish roots. Her interests included jogging, opera, the stock market, and a lifelong interest in drawing and painting. 
     
Becky leaves behind her sons Ben Copple (Eileen) of Barrington an Nathan Copple (Ellen) of Arcada, CA. She is also survived by her grandchildren: Nora, Adam, Helen, Kira, and Sonia Copple. Her memory will also live on through her sisters: Ruth Branson (Terry) of Seattle, WA and Esther Griswold (Robert) of Fort Collins, CO.

Besides her husband and parents, she was preceded by her brother Howard Rombach and his wife Valerie, and her sister Sarah Louise Rombach Moxley and her husband John. 

A memorial gathering is being planned for this summer.  In lieu of flowers, please donate to your local Friends of the Library.  
 

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