Arlene Cora McPherson Roope
ROOPE, Arlene Cora McPherson, 88, PRESQUE ISLE, December 21, 2013. Spring interment will be at Southside Cemetery, Mapleton. Arrangements are in the care of Duncan-Graves Funeral Home, Presque Isle.
PRESQUE ISLE — Arlene Cora McPherson Roope, 88, died peacefully at her home on December 21, 2013, surrounded by her loving family and caregivers. She had been in declining health for the past few years. She was born in Mapleton on August 4, 1925, to Charles E. and Tressa (Murphy) McPherson.
She was a graduate of Mapleton High School, Class of 1943, after which she was employed by New England Tel. & Tel. as a switchboard operator. She married Kenneth B. Roope on July 17, 1945, and together they operated a potato and dairy farm in Chapman. She was active in the Eureka Grange, Farm Bureau/Chapman Extension, Local Chapter of Telephone Pioneers, and Haystack Historical Society. She was also a ballot clerk for Chapman. In the late 40s, she was a charter member of the fledgling Squa Pan Outing Club. Her suppers she chaired and participated in helped raise the revenue for building the road to the lake from a tote road to what it is today.
She was an active member of the West Chapman Advent Christian Church until her health prevented her from attending services. In the late 1960s she and Ken left the farm and moved to Presque Isle and she returned to NET&T. She retired from there. Then finding nothing to do, she went to work at A. R. Gould Memorial Hospital, now known as TAMC, and worked there for 30 yrs. in the admitting office.
She enjoyed sewing, quilting and cooking for the “multitudes”. She was an avid cookbook collector and always could be found reading one right up to her last few months. Arlene and Ken’s doors were always open and the coffee pot on, including a lunch, day or night.
She is survived by one son, Ronald, Sr. and his wife, Julie Roope of Mapleton; two daughters, Rebecca Dean of Presque Isle, and Lynn Maillett and her husband, Daniel of Chapman; a sister and brother-in-law, Joye and Maynard Buck of Chapman; a brother-in-law and wife, James and Annis Roope of Castle Hill; eight grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; two great-great-grandchildren; as well as several cousins, friends and neighbors; her friend and companion of the last two years, Arlene Baker; two very special neighbors, Patricia Grass and Winnie Gardiner; her cat, “Sam”; and several special nieces and nephews.
She was predeceased by her parents, her husband Kenneth in 2008, and an infant baby Danny Boyd.
Relatives and friends called 1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 28, 2013, at the West Chapman Advent Christian Church where funeral services were held at 2 p.m., with Rev. Bruce Blakney officiating. Spring interment will be at Southside Cemetery, Mapleton. Donations may be made in her memory to West Chapman Advent Christian Church Building Fund, 3466 West Chapman Rd., Chapman, ME 04757. Online condolences may be expressed at www.duncan-graves.com.
