Bernice Elizabeth Koppenhaver Drennen, 89, of Beaumont, died peacefully Saturday, August 15, 2009, at Jefferson Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Beaumont.
Born on June 25, 1920, to Edna Kimmel and Mark Koppenhaver in Valley View, Pennsylvania, Bernice was a 1938 graduate of Hegins High School in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. Following graduation, Bernice was employed by Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. It was here that she met her husband of sixty years, Robert Bartlett Drennen. Bernice and Bob moved to Chester, Pennsylvania where they raised their two daughters, Barbara and Sandra. Often alone raising her family while husband Bob was away with the United States Navy, Bernice managed to hold jobs at Ship ‘n Shore clothing, Roger’s Department Store and McCrory’s five and dime, all in the Chester area. She and Bob were long time members of Providence Ave. Methodist Church and until relocating to Texas, Christ United Methodist Church, both in Chester. She was a member of Wesley United Methodist Church in Beaumont.
Bernice was preceded in death by her parents; two sisters, Marie Koppenhaver of Valley View, Pennsylvania and Mary Wynn of Dalmatia, Pennsylvania; and her daughter, Sandra M. Montag of Chester, Pennsylvania. Following the death of her husband, Bob, in June 2000, Bernice moved to Beaumont, Texas to be with her remaining family.
She is survived by her daughter, Barbara A. Killian and her husband Stan of Beaumont; grandchildren, Robert G. Killian and his wife Eisha of Beaumont, and Heather K. Johnson and her husband Stephen of Woking, England; three great-grandchildren, Kelsey Killian Johnson, Carly Colleen Johnson and Tristan Caius Killian; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, August 19, 2009, at Broussard’s, 1605 North Major Drive, Beaumont. Bernice will be laid to rest alongside her husband Bob and daughter Sandra in the Chester Rural Cemetery in Chester, Pennsylvania. A gathering of her family and friends will begin at 9:00 a.m. Wednesday morning prior to the service at Broussard’s.
The family would like to thank Wendy McElroy, and the staff of Hospice of Texas for the wonderful care they provided for Bernice in her final days.
Memorial contributions may be made to Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, P.O. Box 650309, Dallas, Texas 75265.
