Anne Cope-Raddatz, 97, of Belleville, Ill, took her first breath in heaven on January 7, 2021 at St. Paul's Senior Community, Belleville, Ill. Her heavenly Father welcomed her home.

Anne was a descendant of the Cope family from Avebery Co., Wiltshire, England. She was born March 28, 1923 in West Chester, Penn., to William and Marian Cope and raised in the Quaker faith.

What most people did not know about Anne was she was an unsung American hero as one of the first women engineers in the United States. She worked for the Curtiss-Wright aircraft plant in the propeller division during WWII. The company sent her to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at Troy, N.Y., to study aeronautical engineering. She went on to earn her B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Denver.

Anne married for a short time and became a teacher. She taught school for almost 30 years, 10 years overseas. She visited 30 countries and moved 34 times. Her favorite place was Japan.

She settled in Decatur, Ill., where she lived her golden years as a longtime member of Central Christian Church. She was modest and caring, living by faith in God and willing to help anyone and share one of her stories. She lived her last few years at St. Paul's Senior Home in Belleville, Ill.

Anne loved life even when life was hard. She was a Christ follower, and trusted her heavenly Father for strength in her daily living. Anne thoroughly enjoyed writing poetry and short stories.

Anne was preceded in death by her older brothers Andrew P. Cope and William T. Cope, and her younger sister Dorothy Cope Moore.

She is survived by her close cousin Andy (Helen) Mills of Lower Gwynedd, Penn., and many nieces and nephews.

As per Anne's wishes, there will be no service. her cremated remains will be laid to rest in West Chester, Penn.

LIFE IS GOOD…IF YOU WANT IT TO BE!!!

-Anne Raddatz