Ronnie R. Kopp

Ronnie R. Kopp Cecala, loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, passed away peacefully June 19, 2012, at home in Scottsdale, Arizona. She was born in Trumann, Arkansas in 1937. In the early 1940s, her immediate and extended family relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, where Ronnie's parents went to work at an aircraft plant. After the war, the family moved to Memphis, Tennessee. Ronnie graduated from Central High School, where she excelled academically, sang in choirs, and was active in a sorority. She also volunteered at the USO. In 1954, Ronnie was married in a Memphis cathedral to Don Cecala, a Utah native who was serving in the Marine Air Wing at the U.S. Naval Air Station, Millington, TN. The couple raised their four children in Salt Lake City, residing there for more than two decades. Ronnie was active in her church and community, serving as Cub Scout den mother, PTA president, and Granite Mental Health Center volunteer, among others. In the 1980s, the couple moved to St. George, Utah. Ronnie established and for several years operated the first general trade bookstore in town. Her favorite experience was organizing and hosting a children's literature festival, which brought together nationally prominent authors and area residents. In 2003, Ronnie and Don relocated to Scottsdale, Arizona. Ronnie subsequently compiled and published a family keepsake recipe book. At the time of her passing, she had nearly completed a second, much larger book called "Recipes of a Lifetime." She also published "A Footsoldier's Chronicle: The Civil War Diaries of Cpl. John G. Stern," a book about her great, great uncle and his service in the Army of the Potomac. Ronnie was a beautiful southern belle, who loved books and was an avid reader of fiction and non-fiction. She was keenly interested in writing, cooking, New York Times' crossword puzzles, and antique wood refinishing. She was deeply spiritual, and was called on to provide friendship, counseling, and caregiving to many people over the years, both family and non-family. She particularly enjoyed forming and leading a Salt Lake women's group, and debating the social issues of the time. Ronnie will be remembered by many for her courageous fights against injustice and against cancer. She had a sharp wit, and sense of adventure. She drove her children across the country on sightseeing tours, and appeared in educational and recreation films for the federal Bureau of Reclamation. She also accompanied her husband and his associates on Utah and Arizona historical research trips. She cheered for basketball teams Utah Jazz and Phoenix Suns, and attended a Super Bowl in Miami. She will be sorely missed by her family and friends. Ronnie is survived by her sister, Lynette Kopp Albertson; husband, Don, of Scottsdale AZ; two sons, Rick (Katherine) of Phoenix, AZ, and Randal (Christine), of Bakersfield, CA; one daughter, Renee Cecala, of Scottsdale, AZ; six wonderful grandchildren, Brandon, Tyson, Bo, Melissa, Tamara, and Nicholas; and seven great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her parents, Archibald A. Kopp and Rhonda L. Lackey Wofford, and son Robert Cecala. A Memorial Service and Celebration of Life will be held at 6PM, Wednesday, July 11, 2012, Heritage Gardens, 2050 East Creek Rd., Sandy, Utah. Interment will be at Oak Lawn Cemetery, Jonesboro, Arkansas. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to The American Cancer Society or Best Friends Animal Society, Kanab, Utah.

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