Mom caught the bus she had been waiting for early in the morning on December 20, 2013. Roberta Simpson Coon was third generation native Californian born to parents who were children of early settlers to the central valley. The Kirch, Simpson, Bailey, and Hedgepeth are names found on the family tree. Her grandfather was an early member of the State Assembly and her great-grandfather was the first Fresno County School Superintendent. The Simpsons also donated the land for the first school (Dry Creek) and the oldest Methodist Church in Fresno County. The Kirchs were homesteaders who settled in the foothills of Fresno County. Baileys were some of the original settlers at Fort Miller. Roberta was born along with her fraternal twin Robert "Bud" Simpson on November 10, 1919. She attended elementary school at Dry Creek which was then located at Academy on Tollhouse Rd. and Clovis High where she graduated in 1937. She attended, 4 C's, Fresno City College and Fresno State College until the war began. She then began working at the Bank of America. She met her husband during the war when he was stationed at Hammer Field. He was on guard duty when she took her brother back to base. They were married in 1943 and settled in the Fresno area after the war. Roberta was a stay at home mom, but had her fingers in just about every organization at school. She was Girl Scout leader, President of the PTA, and secretary to more organizations than memory can count. As her family grew she ran out of things to do so she went back to work for the Bank of America where once again she was president, secretary, and treasurer of every organization she belonged to. Some of which included ABWA, BofA Retirees, Sierra Resource Conservation District, Academy Circle, and Methodist Church. She also volunteered at the gift shop of Clovis Hospital and served food to those in need. She is preceded in death by her parents, Robert and Ella Simpson; and brother, Bud Simpson; her husband, Harold Coon; and most all her cousins, aunts, and uncles. She is survived by her daughters, Jeanne Coon-Kelton and Joanne Hill-Mitchell; her grandson, Gary Hill and his wife Dana; granddaughter, Dionne Hill; and great-grandson, Robert Winn Hill. Visitation will be held at Clovis Funeral Chapel on Thursday, December 26, 2013 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Interment will be held at Academy Cemetery on Friday, December 27, 2013 at 1:00 p.m., Memorial Service to follow at Academy Methodist Church. Remembrances may be sent to ACT (Animal Compassion Team), 2789 S. Orange Ave., Fresno, Ca. 93725

Published in the Fresno Bee on Dec. 24, 2013