William "Bill" copper

Unforgettable Too

William “Bill” Copper, the son of Cyril and Margaret Copper, devoted husband for 63 years to June
Copper, father to Kristin, Mindi and Ken, and a best friend and neighbor to many, passed away at the
age of 90 on May 5, 2024.
 
Born in Buffalo, New York, Bill’s family, including his beloved sister Eleanor and younger brother John
lived on the east coast until making their way to Wrightwood California in the early 1950’s.
 
Bill grew up during a time when being a kid meant spending days outside, in a pack (The Robinhood
Circle Gang), looking for adventure.  From an early age, Bill had an innate curiosity for the natural world
and stories from his childhood often included close encounters with birds, bugs, and amphibians (frogs).

Drafted into the army in 1953 , Bill spent his service time in South Korea and Oahu.  When he returned,
he used the GI Bill to attend Los Angeles State College then UCLA where he earned a master’s in biology
and met entomologist and life-long friend, Donald Dahlsten.  In 1957, Bill met June Pitkin in Wrightwood
on a blind date, they married in August 1958.
 
Bill’s interest in bioscience and his friendship with Dahlsten led him to UC Berkeley’s Entomology and
Biological Control Research Center, Gill Tract.  Bill was involved in and published a variety of research
studies and scientific illustrations, however, most of his career focused on the natural predators of
forest insect pests and efforts to eliminate the harmful use of broad-spectrum insecticides such as DDT.
  
Bill and June raised their family in the Bay Area then moved to the foothills in the late 1970s.  They ran a
family-owned business in Pioneer and eventually built their home and settled in Pine Grove.  For many
years their home was “the” gathering place for family and friends.
 
Bill is survived by his daughters Kristin and Mindi, son-in-law Ken Foster, and his grandchildren Lily and
Rylie.

Dusty dirt roads, big mountains, small creatures, cold Budweiser, and the smell of pine needles on a hot
summer day will remind us of you always.  We hope you and Mom are still on Cloud 5.
  
We love you most.

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