Fred A.
Kopp
Kopp, Fred A.
For better or for worse.
In sickness and in health
Till death do us part……
Fred kept these marriage vows to his loving wife, Mary, for almost fifty-four years. With baseball in hand, he passed away peacefully in his home on Friday morning, May 8th, after being diagnosed with a glioblastoma (brain cancer) on February 24th. He joins his precious daughter, Sue (Suzi) who preceded him in death last August 25th.
Fred is survived by his wife, Mary, and their three sons -Mark (Andrea) of Canton, MI., John (Cheryl) of Oak Creek, WI and Jeffrey (Jennifer) of Muskego, WI. He is also survived by his brother John of Shopiere, WI. , nine grandchildren- Alex (Marissa) Jaskulski, Dan (Emily) Callies, Evan, Lauren, Ashley, Megan, Ryan, Erin and Rachel Kopp and one great-grandson-Alder Callies.
The older son of the late Ross (Andy) and Marjorie Kangas Kopp, Fred was born in Shopiere, WI on June 29, 1939. He graduated from Clinton, WI High School and the University of WI Whitewater with a degree in accounting. However, Fred was an entrepreneur at heart and in 1982 created what became a successful physician recruitment resource company.
Fred was an avid baseball and softball fan and player for most of his life. At seventeen, he was recruited by the then New York Giants to join them for Spring Training in Sanford, FL. For the past twenty-five years, Fred played senior softball year-round in Milwaukee and Venice, FL. He was an amazing shortstop and hitter and was member of the 1999 World Champion Senior Softball Team. In 2014, Fred was named one of the All-American players of the year.
Words cannot express the love Fred had for his children and grandchildren. Known as the #1 Superfan, “Papa” rarely missed a game, match or event, always reminding his grandkids to perform or play with energy and joy. He was a true family man who welcomed every opportunity to spend time with family. Both he and Mary especially enjoyed all the family visits to their Florida villa during the past fifteen years.
Fred will be dearly missed by his family and all who knew him. He will be remembered for his positive attitude, generous spirit, infectious laugh and awesome hugs. Until we meet again….
Funeral arrangements are pending with a Mass of Christian Burial to be said at St. Mary Parish of Hales Corners, WI. later this summer.
And finally, Fred’s family would like to thank and express sincere appreciation to the Aurora-at-Home Hospice Team who treated him with such tender care, love and compassion during his final days-Katie, Cindy, Lindsay, Jerry and Pam.
Dear Mary and Family
Paul and I are so sorry for the loss of Fred. Please know that you you are in our daily prayers and may God be with you @ this difficult time
Paul and Maggie Buonarosa
205 Reclinata Circle
Venice, FL 34292
Fred is in a better place, is at peace and without pain!
He was a friend and we are glad to have known him and will miss him We extend our sympathies to Mary and the entire family. We will pray for his soul.
To Mary and family, Rick and I send our deepest condolences and prayers.
Dear, Jeff,, sending my prayers to you and your family, God Bless..
Dearest Mary & Family,
Please accept our deepest condolences for the loss of Fred. Our family will miss him greatly! That was a beautiful obituary, and every word was so true. We will miss his huge smile and warm hugs every time he saw us! His laugh was infectious, and his love for his family was undeniable.
In time, may the memories of this wonderful man come to bring you more joy than sorrow. We are here if you need us.
Rob, Lisa, Cassandra,Brianne, Zachary & Aaron Jaskulski
On behalf of all the residents of Auburn Hammocks let me say we are so sorry to hear of Fred’s passing. He was a loved member of our community. We extend our deepest sympathies to Mary and the family and hold you in our thoughts and prayers. 🙏
Maria and Warren Goodwin
Sending our deepest sympathies to you and your family…..may the precious memories you had shared together bring comfort and healing.
Nancy and Bob Sherwood
Our thoughts and prayers are with Fred, Mary and family. With heavy hearts, Blessings to all. Tom and Joan Gapinski
Mary and family Fred died too soon and will be missed. You have gone thru so much sorrow this past year. Will think of you often. Paula + Shep
Dear Mary and to your family,
we are sending all of you strength and comfort in this most distressing of times.
Please know all of you are in my prayers Mary.
Be safe please,
Lynne & Rich Skop
Dear Mary,
We are sorry to hear of your loss. You and Fred were the first people we met at the Clubhouse. We enjoyed hearing Fred’s softball stories. We know how much you will miss him.
Joan and Bill Fitzpatrick
Jeff, even though we haven’t seen each other in years, I am sorry for your loss. Prayers
Dear Mary and Family, Fred will be deeply missed by me. We have many shared memories. We were neighbors in Hales Corners for many years, our children grew up together. Our trips to Door County and our visits in Florida will never be forgotten. Fred and Mary were very supportive when I lost my wife, Linda.. He was my very special friend. Robert Kerr.
Dear Mary and Family,
I am very sorry for your loss of your husband Fred. Although I only have known you and Fred for two years, you had me feeling like I’ve known you for ten years. I will miss you very much and I can only hope that you will endure. The community at Auburn Hammocks misses you and Fred greatly.
We are so sorry to hear of Fred’s passing. Glioblastoma is a terrible disease. We send our prayers to Mary and family. Cindy and Jim
My thoughts are with you and your family. 🕊 ❤️ ⚓️
Mary, our deepest sympathy to you and your family. We hope that your memories of Fred’s love and his well-lived life can help sustain you through this second loss. Tom and Janet
Dear Mary and family, I congratulate Fred and you , Mary, for the 54 years of marriage, my husband and I were 55 years, his passing last July has me understanding the sorrow you all have in the family and how it changes daily, moment to moment for many days as you all know from your Suzi’s passing. May you be given the strength to continue on in this pandemic atmosphere.
Mary, Bill and I extend our sincere sympathy and prayers to you and your family. Peace and Grace be with you all during this sad time.
Bill and Kathy Wright
Mary and family;
We are all saddened by Fred’s passing and he will be missed by us all. However, we all have many memories about Fred to hold dear to our hearts. Fred was a very unique individual. His life was certainly rooted around sports while sprouting blossoms of romanticism. We have enjoyed so many fun times with Fred and Mary. How can we forget the crumbs that he left at the table or the flash decisions he made when looking at a menu in a restaurant? Fred also had the ability to disagree in the most agreeable manner. Hopefully in Fred’s afterlife, he will have a fancy car to drive and a computer printer that works. We are all going to miss Fred and all the fun and energy that he brought into a room. Luckily, he left us all with many fond memories We can all be thankful that Fred was part of our lives for many years.
Mary,
What a beautiful Obit. Fred was a very special person We loved him and will miss him too.
As we will you until you come down to visit
Dear Mary and family:
You probably won’t remember me, but my Dad, Gary Howard, and Fred grew up together (and, I believe, were classmates in Clinton ’57). I also know Sue pretty well several years ago, and I am SO sorry to hear about her too – she was a dear woman/person/friend. Having been a ‘Shopiere kid’ most of my life, I knew Andy and Marj well, and in fact, one of the last itmes I may have see Sue was at Andy’s visitation. I always felt that Fred was one of those people who left the Shopiere area for great things, but never let go of it in his heart. Having lived around the world, and then moved back, I always felt an appreciation for that in him.
My condolences to you all, and take care,
Tom Howard
Dear Mary and family,
I was saddened to get the notice of Fred’s death. I always enjoyed seeing him at Gary’s class reunions, when he visited in Shopiere or the class breakfasts. I’m sure he, Gary and the others of the class of ‘57 that are no longer with us are having a great heavenly reunion. You and your family are in my prayers.
Dear Mary and family, I just heard about Fred’s passing. I’m so sorry to hear that. What a great guy! The last time we saw him was at Buck Van Zandt’s memorial service at Shopiere Park. We enjoyed his sharing lots of memories about growing up in the Shopiere area. My husband and I were both “Shopiere kids”. Praying that God will comfort you during this difficult time.
Jim and Marilyn (Craw) Potts
Dear Mary and Family,
Today we learned of Fred’s passing. Our hearts go out to all. Especially since learning of Fred’s illness, we have prayed for peace for all of you. We know this past year has called for immeasurable strength from your family. And so we continue to keep all of you in our prayers.
Your Memorial is lovely and meaningful, showing great love and in the style we have come to know of the Kopp family.
Simply beautiful. As are all of you.
Love,
John and Janet Maciolek
Dear Mary and Family,
Both Doug and I were saddened to here of Fred’s passing. Words are difficult to really express our feelings regarding your loss. We will continue to keep you in our prayers and hearts as you grieve. May all your fond memories comfort you during this time of loss. We plan to join family and friends on August 9th to remember a wonderful man. With Deepest Sympathy.
Dearest Mary and Family,
We would like you to know that Fred will always live on in our hearts. All the love and goodness that he shared with us throughout the decades will stay with us forever. From the moment we arrived in America, you and Fred made us fall in love with this country, with its people, and with your family. To us, Fred has always been not only a dear friend, but also an embodiment of a great American. We will always love him, and we will always love you.
Luda, Yuri, Rose and Max