Leonard William Copple, a former Tempe City Council member and long-time community leader, passed away early Monday morning after a courageous battle with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Len was a native son of Arizona. He was raised in Yuma, where his father and his father's father made their homes. He married Jean Bailey, his sweetheart from Yuma High School, in 1960. They lived in Tucson while he attended college and law school at the University of Arizona. After graduation in 1965, he began active duty in the US Army, serving as a member of the Judge Advocate General's Corps and volunteering for service in Vietnam. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and completed service in 1969. Len and Jean then chose to settle in Tempe, where they bought a home in a new neighborhood just south of Southern Avenue. He worked for Phoenix law firms for five years and then commenced a solo practice in Tempe, which he continued for 30 more years. Long-time Tempeans recall seeing the sign for his office on the north side of Southern Avenue just west of Price Road. In addition to his law practice, he was active in volunteer legal activities; he taught legal writing at the ASU College of Law and was a frequent lecturer at trial advocacy seminars; he served on the Maricopa County Judicial Nominating Commission and the State Bar Professionalism and Peer Review Committees, and was the Chairman and a Hearing Officer for the Disciplinary Hearing Committee; and he served as a Judge pro tem in Maricopa County Superior Court for ten years. Throughout his long legal career, Leonard was respected by other lawyers for his careful preparation and ethics, and admired by his many clients for his empathy and caring. He often reduced or waived his fees, and provided friendship and emotional support to struggling clients long after the legal work was finished. He remarked recently that helping people was the highlight of his work as a lawyer. Even while practicing law full-time, Leonard had a parallel career as a community volunteer and public servant. He felt a special commitment to the less fortunate, which led to his service as a member of the Tempe Salvation Army Advisory Board, and as a board member and President for Tempe Centers for Habilitation, which in 1985 named its vocational training center building after him. For many years he read law books for Recording for the Blind, and more recently drove for Meals on Wheels. In 2008, he and Jean went to New Orleans with the Presbyterian Disaster Association to work on a Habitat for Humanity home rebuilding project. It is not widely known that Leonard was a frequent blood donor and member of the ten gallon club. Leonard and Jean were early and active members of the Tempe Sister City Organization; Len served as Treasurer for many years and played an important role in organizing the annual Sister City Festival and Way Out West Octoberfest events that fueled the organization's early growth. He and Jean hosted several exchange students and official delegates from Tempe's sister cities in their home and traveled to Skopje, Regensburg and Lower Hutt with others from Tempe. Len worked tirelessly for decades, in many different ways, for the betterment of Tempe. He was a member of the Planning and Zoning Commission for nine years, and also served in the early 90's as Chairman of the Vision Tempe Task Force, which set an early foundation for many significant civic projects through its recognition of the importance of downtown Tempe and the revitalization of the Mill Avenue corridor. At various times he was a member of the City of Tempe Bond Committee, the Tempe Union High School Superintendant's Advisory Council, and the selection committee for Tempe Presiding Judge. He also served from 1992-1993 as chairman of the Downtown Tempe Steering Advisory Committee, which became the Downtown Tempe Community. For many years, Len's smooth voice could be heard on the City of Tempe's on-hold messaging system describing various community amenities and services. He was the recipient with his wife Jean of Tempe Leadership's 1994 Community Leader Award, and the Tempe Community Council named Len a "Tempe Treasure." In 1994, Leonard was appointed to serve out a six-month term on the Tempe City Council, and he was later elected twice to the City Council, serving from 1998 to 2006. Len's tenure on the council coincided with significant growth and development in Tempe, and he took particular pride in the evolution of the downtown area and his contributions to the Town Lake project and in particular the installation of the light rail system. He was a Board Member for the Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority and played a key role in securing federal funding for the East Valley Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility, the Tempe Transportation Center, and the Central Phoenix/East Valley Light Rail Project. As Chairman of the Tempe City Council Transportation Committee, he led the implementation of Tempe's free bus pass program for youth and ASU students. He also recognized the potential benefits to the community of events that attracted visitors and raised the city's profile, and was instrumental in bringing the annual Rock 'N Roll Marathon and Ironman Triathlon events to Tempe. His council service was always motivated by a deep desire to do what he believed was best for the city and its residents, and he was widely respected for his insight, thoughtful approach to problems, directness, and integrity. Leonard's community service continued after he left the City Council. He was the front desk receptionist for the Tempe Community Council's Earned Income Tax Credit program for eight of the last nine years, and in recent years he was a board member and Treasurer of the Friends of the Tempe Center for the Arts. He took great pride in the newly completed Tempe Center for the Arts at the Tempe Town Lake. Leonard had diverse interests. As a teenager, he was an amateur magician, an actor in high-school plays, a debate champion, and governor of Arizona Boys' State. One of his earliest jobs was as a radio disc jockey during high school in Yuma. He was a talented handyman and enjoyed construction projects, some rather ambitious, at his home, office and cabin in Munds Park, where he and Jean spent countless happy days together and with family and friends. He also enjoyed gardening and consistently declined frequent suggestions from his children to "get some help with the yard." He was a long-time member and former Elder and Trustee of University Presbyterian Church, and more recently a member of Mission del Sol Presbyterian Church. He was deeply patriotic, he recently became a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and friends recall the American flag hanging daily from the eaves of his house. Like many other optimists, Len rose early, often before sunrise. He loved to enjoy his coffee and morning newspaper on the back porch of his long-time home in The Lakes. He was a very dedicated family man, supporting Jean's interest in genealogy with frequent trips to archives, churches and cemeteries throughout the US and Europe, and recognizing and nurturing the unique interests and talents of each of his children and grandchildren. He and Jean celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in March. Len had a profound influence on countless people and was widely loved for his friendliness, compassion, wisdom, humility and irrepressibly positive attitude. He passed away at the age of 68, but packed 100 years of service, achievement and happiness into that time.
Leonard William Copple, a former Tempe City Council member and long-time community leader, passed away early Monday morning after a courageous battle with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Len was a native son of Arizona. He was raised in Yuma, where his father and his father's father made their homes. He married Jean Bailey, his sweetheart from Yuma High School, in 1960. They lived in Tucson while he attended college and law school at the University of Arizona. After graduation in 1965, he began active duty in the US Army, serving as a member of the Judge Advocate General's Corps and volunteering for service in Vietnam. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal and completed service in 1969. Len and Jean then chose to settle in Tempe, where they bought a home in a new neighborhood just south of Southern Avenue. He worked for Phoenix law firms for five years and then commenced a solo practice in Tempe, which he continued for 30 more years. Long-time Tempeans recall seeing the sign for his office on the north side of Southern Avenue just west of Price Road. In addition to his law practice, he was active in volunteer legal activities; he taught legal writing at the ASU College of Law and was a frequent lecturer at trial advocacy seminars; he served on the Maricopa County Judicial Nominating Commission and the State Bar Professionalism and Peer Review Committees, and was the Chairman and a Hearing Officer for the Disciplinary Hearing Committee; and he served as a Judge pro tem in Maricopa County Superior Court for ten years. Throughout his long legal career, Leonard was respected by other lawyers for his careful preparation and ethics, and admired by his many clients for his empathy and caring. He often reduced or waived his fees, and provided friendship and emotional support to struggling clients long after the legal work was finished. He remarked recently that helping people was the highlight of his work as a lawyer. Even while practicing law full-time, Leonard had a parallel career as a community volunteer and public servant. He felt a special commitment to the less fortunate, which led to his service as a member of the Tempe Salvation Army Advisory Board, and as a board member and President for Tempe Centers for Habilitation, which in 1985 named its vocational training center building after him. For many years he read law books for Recording for the Blind, and more recently drove for Meals on Wheels. In 2008, he and Jean went to New Orleans with the Presbyterian Disaster Association to work on a Habitat for Humanity home rebuilding project. It is not widely known that Leonard was a frequent blood donor and member of the ten gallon club. Leonard and Jean were early and active members of the Tempe Sister City Organization; Len served as Treasurer for many years and played an important role in organizing the annual Sister City Festival and Way Out West Octoberfest events that fueled the organization's early growth. He and Jean hosted several exchange students and official delegates from Tempe's sister cities in their home and traveled to Skopje, Regensburg and Lower Hutt with others from Tempe. Len worked tirelessly for decades, in many different ways, for the betterment of Tempe. He was a member of the Planning and Zoning Commission for nine years, and also served in the early 90's as Chairman of the Vision Tempe Task Force, which set an early foundation for many significant civic projects through its recognition of the importance of downtown Tempe and the revitalization of the Mill Avenue corridor. At various times he was a member of the City of Tempe Bond Committee, the Tempe Union High School Superintendant's Advisory Council, and the selection committee for Tempe Presiding Judge. He also served from 1992-1993 as chairman of the Downtown Tempe Steering Advisory Committee, which became the Downtown Tempe Community. For many years, Len's smooth voice could be heard on the City of Tempe's on-hold messaging system describing various community amenities and services. He was the recipient with his wife Jean of Tempe Leadership's 1994 Community Leader Award, and the Tempe Community Council named Len a "Tempe Treasure." In 1994, Leonard was appointed to serve out a six-month term on the Tempe City Council, and he was later elected twice to the City Council, serving from 1998 to 2006. Len's tenure on the council coincided with significant growth and development in Tempe, and he took particular pride in the evolution of the downtown area and his contributions to the Town Lake project and in particular the installation of the light rail system. He was a Board Member for the Valley Metro Regional Public Transportation Authority and played a key role in securing federal funding for the East Valley Bus Operations and Maintenance Facility, the Tempe Transportation Center, and the Central Phoenix/East Valley Light Rail Project. As Chairman of the Tempe City Council Transportation Committee, he led the implementation of Tempe's free bus pass program for youth and ASU students. He also recognized the potential benefits to the community of events that attracted visitors and raised the city's profile, and was instrumental in bringing the annual Rock 'N Roll Marathon and Ironman Triathlon events to Tempe. His council service was always motivated by a deep desire to do what he believed was best for the city and its residents, and he was widely respected for his insight, thoughtful approach to problems, directness, and integrity. Leonard's community service continued after he left the City Council. He was the front desk receptionist for the Tempe Community Council's Earned Income Tax Credit program for eight of the last nine years, and in recent years he was a board member and Treasurer of the Friends of the Tempe Center for the Arts. He took great pride in the newly completed Tempe Center for the Arts at the Tempe Town Lake. Leonard had diverse interests. As a teenager, he was an amateur magician, an actor in high-school plays, a debate champion, and governor of Arizona Boys' State. One of his earliest jobs was as a radio disc jockey during high school in Yuma. He was a talented handyman and enjoyed construction projects, some rather ambitious, at his home, office and cabin in Munds Park, where he and Jean spent countless happy days together and with family and friends. He also enjoyed gardening and consistently declined frequent suggestions from his children to "get some help with the yard." He was a long-time member and former Elder and Trustee of University Presbyterian Church, and more recently a member of Mission del Sol Presbyterian Church. He was deeply patriotic, he recently became a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and friends recall the American flag hanging daily from the eaves of his house. Like many other optimists, Len rose early, often before sunrise. He loved to enjoy his coffee and morning newspaper on the back porch of his long-time home in The Lakes. He was a very dedicated family man, supporting Jean's interest in genealogy with frequent trips to archives, churches and cemeteries throughout the US and Europe, and recognizing and nurturing the unique interests and talents of each of his children and grandchildren. He and Jean celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in March. Len had a profound influence on countless people and was widely loved for his friendliness, compassion, wisdom, humility and irrepressibly positive attitude. He passed away at the age of 68, but packed 100 years of service, achievement and happiness into that time.
Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/52703131/leonard_william-copple: accessed
), memorial page for Leonard William Copple (31 Jul 1941–17 May 2010), Find a Grave Memorial ID 52703131, citing Tempe Double Butte Cemetery, Tempe,
Maricopa County,
Arizona,
USA;
Maintained by JEAN COPPLE (contributor 46859332).
Add Photos for Leonard William Copple
Fulfill Photo Request for Leonard William Copple
Photo Request Fulfilled
Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request
There is an open photo request for this memorial
Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request?
Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s).
Oops, something didn't work. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again.
Make sure that the file is a photo. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced.
All photos uploaded successfully, click on the <b>Done button</b> to see the photos in the gallery.
General photo guidelines:
Photos larger than 8.0 MB will be optimized and reduced.
Each contributor can upload a maximum of 5 photos for a memorial.
A memorial can have a maximum of 20 photos from all contributors.
The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional 10 photos (for a total of 30 on the memorial).
Include gps location with grave photos where possible.
No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments.)
You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial.
Memorial Photos
This is a carousel with slides. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel.
Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried.
Show Map
If the memorial includes GPS coordinates, simply click 'Show Map' to view the gravesite location within the cemetery. If no GPS coordinates are available, you can contribute by adding them if you know the precise location.
Photos
For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab.
Photos Tab
All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer.
Flowers
Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button.
Family Members
Family members linked to this person will appear here.
Related searches
Use the links under See more… to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc.
Sponsor This Memorial
Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option.
Share
Share this memorial using social media sites or email.
Save to
Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print.
Edit or Suggest Edit
Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager.
Have Feedback
Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you.
You may not upload any more photos to this memorial
"Unsupported file type"
Uploading...
Waiting...
Success
Failed
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
Invalid File Type
Uploading 1 Photo
Uploading 2 Photos
1 Photo Uploaded
2 Photos Uploaded
Added by
GREAT NEWS! There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery.
Sorry! There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request.
Enter numeric value
Enter memorial Id
Year should not be greater than current year
Invalid memorial
Duplicate entry for memorial
You have chosen this person to be their own family member.
Reported!
This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates.
0% Complete
Saved
Sign in or Register
Sign in to Find a Grave
Sign-in to link to existing account
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
We’ve updated the security on the site. Please reset your password.
Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Please contact Find a Grave at [email protected] if you need help resetting your password.
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
Email not found
Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person.
Sign in to your existing Find a Grave account. You’ll only have to do this once—after your accounts are connected, you can sign in using your Ancestry sign in or your Find a Grave sign in.
We found an existing Find a Grave account associated with your email address. Sign in below with your Find a Grave credentials to link your Ancestry account. After your accounts are connected you can sign in using either account.
Please enter your email to sign in.
Please enter your password to sign in.
Please enter your email and password to sign in.
There is a problem with your email/password.
A system error has occurred. Please try again later.
A password reset email has been sent to EmailID. If you don't see an email, please check your spam folder.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
Password Reset
Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code.
Registration Options
Welcome to Find a Grave
Create your free account by choosing an option below.
or
Ancestry account link
To create your account, Ancestry will share your name and email address with Find a Grave. To continue choose an option below.
or
If you already have a Find a Grave account, please sign in to link to Ancestry®.
New Member Registration
Email is mandatory
Email and Password are mandatory
This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. Resend Activation Email
Your password is not strong enough
Invalid Email
You must agree to Terms and Conditions
Account already exists
Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox
Internal Server error occurred
If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map
You must select an email preference
We have sent you an activation email
Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters.
We just emailed an activation code to
Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account.
cemeteries found in will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
Within 5 miles of your location.
Within 5 kilometers of your location.
0 cemeteries found in .
0 cemeteries found.
Add a cemetery to fulfill photo requests
You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below.
Search above to list available cemeteries.
Getting location…
Loading...
Loading...
No cemeteries found
Find a Grave Video Tutorials
Default Language
Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [email protected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. Thanks for your help!
Preferred Language
We have set your language to based on information from your browser.