Bernice Bopp

Bernice Mahan was born in the small town of Mineral Wells, Texas, on February 2, 1932, and what followed after that was 86 years of a fiery red-headed girl taking the world by storm. She was the youngest of 5 girls born to a plumber and a housewife during the depression. But what they lacked in money, they made up for in love and laughter. On road trips in their 1928 Dodge, they would sing harmonies, tell jokes, and laugh all the way to the Brazos River where they would swim, fish, and picnic with cousins. Bernice claims to have had “the best momma in the whole world” who taught her all the graces of being a true southern lady and passed down the “Mahan Sense of Humor” which is best described as a heavy dose of sarcasm with a light coat of sugar. At the age of 16, she graduated from Mineral Wells High School. She spent the next few years attending business school and traveling around to visit her married sisters – from Houston to New Jersey and many places in between. At 19, she met an Air Force solider on a blind date. After a whirlwind romance, she and Phil Bopp married, and within months, he was off to Korea and she was pregnant with their first child. In the years that followed, she became a mother of 3, and as they moved around for Phil’s career, she made a home for them in places like Memphis, Gatlinburg, New York City, and Vail. She was not only a homemaker, but also worked full-time in the insurance industry. Later in life, after she and Phil divorced and she retired from Blue Cross-Blue Shield, she settled in Knoxville and began the next phase of her life as a grandmother, and most recently, a great-grandmother – roles that she took great pride in. Bernice Bopp, aka B Bopp, was a lady who knew what she liked and knew what she didn’t. She didn’t like grass, cats, mean people, stairs, elevators, or deep water. Her likes included ballroom dancing, foreign languages, Mexican food, babies, blue birds, Scotch tape, Kleenex, Scooby Doo, old movies, 60’s sitcoms, crossword puzzles, and correcting people’s grammar. Her list of likes certainly exceeded her dislikes because she truly loved all the small, simple pleasures life had to offer. But nothing trumped her love for her family or her ultimate love – Jesus Christ, her Lord and Savior. To know her was to know stubbornness and conviction. Whether it was her love of Scotch tape or her faith in Jesus, you couldn’t change her mind about anything. Her relationship with Jesus was a constant throughout her life – and something she didn’t keep to herself. She was afraid of many things, but she was never afraid to tell the story of Jesus. She prided herself on being able to say “Hello” in 62 languages, and she would often use that as a segue to share the Gospel with friends, friends of friends, or just total strangers she met in the grocery store, reveling in it even more when she got to speak to them in their native language. She would pray relentlessly for her family and friends, give love freely to all those in her life, and brighten anybody’s day with her blue eyes and warm Texas smile. She depended on Jesus for her every need, thanked Him for her every blessing, and in her final days, she called out to Him to bring her home. And on July 15, 2018, after an eight-month fight with cancer, He did just that. Bernice was a member of First Baptist Church of Knoxville. She was also a member of the Red Hat Society, Knoxville Opera Guild, and Knoxville Symphony League. She is preceded in death by her parents, William and Winnie Mahan and her sisters, Jewel Clements, Ruby Smith, and Fay Nichols. She is survived by sister, Billie Dickey; children, Lynda Shade, Nancy (Barry) Sanders, and Gary (Janna) Bopp; grandchildren, Maryah (Nathan) Woerner, Carisa Shade, Skye (Harrison) Jerrolds, Star (Luke) Hall, and Summer Sanders; great-grandchildren, Brendon & London Shade, Naomi & Ada Woerner, and Stella Jerrolds and many cousins, nieces, and nephews whom she loved dearly. Special thanks to the staff at Shannondale Healthcare Center and Avalon Hospice for their excellent care and for going above and beyond to show kindness and compassion to B Bopp. In lieu of flowers, at Bernice’s request, donations may be made to SEND International in support of Bernice’s granddaughter, Maryah Woerner, who is a missionary in Japan. Checks may be made payable to SEND International, PO Box 513, Farmington, MI 48332 or online at www.send.org/woerner. Please include “In Memory of Bernice Bopp” on donations. The family will receive friends on Sunday, July 22nd, 2018 from 2:00pm - 4:00pm at Berry Funeral Home, 3704 Chapman Highway, Knoxville, Tennessee 37920. Celebration of life to follow with Pastor Dana Fachman to officiate. Condolences may be made at www.berryfuneralhome.com