Roberta "Bobbi" Cooper

Bobbi was born on October 13, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York, to Mary and Harry Sloan. She grew up in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

On July 22, 1956, Bobbi married the love of her life, Ronald Cooper and raised their children, Janice, Michael, and Scott, in Poughkeepsie, New York.

Bobbi graduated from NYU and obtained her master’s degree in education from SUNY New Paltz. She taught kindergarten for many years. Bobbi was dedicated to her students and often would share the songs she sang with them by playing the piano and also the accordion, which was one of many hidden talents.

After 18 years in Poughkeepsie, Bobbi and Ron moved up the Hudson River to Hyde Park, NY. They lived in a beautiful house overlooking the river, during which time they traveled extensively while Bobbi pursued interests such as skiing, cooking and aerobics.

Having tired of shoveling snow, Bobbi and Ron moved to Boca Raton. They lived on the seventh fairway of a golf course in a country club community though neither of them played golf. For 25 years, they lived the life. They travelled more than ever, visiting their children, skiing and cruising often. They travelled the world, including Europe, China, an African safari, skiing in Colorado and Switzerland, and more.

In Florida, Bobbi continued exercising in the gym regularly and took her voracious reading to a new level, challenging the library by reading virtually everything they had in her preferred subjects including history and historical fiction. Their house came complete with a kitchen, but you would never have known it since Bobbi pretty much gave up cooking. Instead they learned all the best restaurants in Boca and ate out every night except Friday, which was reserved for leftovers.

Finally, Bobbi and Ron moved to Adante in San Antonio to be closer to their daughter Janice and her husband Markey. For the third time in her adult life Bobbi started over, making new friends and learning an entirely new routine. She succeeded because, despite worsening physical impairment, Bobbi retained her charm, authenticity, and sense of humor. Throughout her life, it seemed that everyone liked Bobbi.

By the time Bobbi moved to San Antonio, her intellectual and physical faculties had diminished. But her incredible strength and spirit never weakened and even though her body let her down, she never stopped fighting, she never stopped smiling and she never stopped caring for her husband and her family far more than she worried about herself. She remained upbeat, engaging, friendly and outgoing. Bobbi was equally comfortable discussing politics as she was at ease talking about children’s books, European history and fashion. The light in her eyes stayed bright for all of her days and it will never extinguish in our memories.

Bobbi is survived by her beloved husband, Ron; sister, Leslie (Paul); daughter, Janice Penner (Mark); sons, Michael (Anne) and Scott (Susan); as well as grandsons, Jeremy (Maia) and Brian (Alyssa) Spiegel, Daniel and Jason Cooper; and great-grandchildren, Liora, Ilan, Hudson, Cooper, and Parker.