Mayanna S. (Smith) Kopp

Mayanna Smith Kopp passed away on March 30, 2026.  She was born July 12, 1930, to F. Glenn and Manilla Wright Smith in Pilot Rock, Oregon.  Mayanna lived her first three years with her parents and brother, Harold Smith, on the J.E. Livestock Company ranch.  The family then moved to the Halfway House on Yellowjacket Road to live with Eddie and Emma Wright, her maternal grandparents.

Mayanna rode horseback to the Byrd Country School for the first four years of her schooling, then rode the bus to Pilot Rock Grade and High School until she graduated in 1948.  Following graduation Mayanna attended business college in Portland and then worked in the office at Meier & Frank.  She returned to Pendleton to work in the office at St. Anthony’s Hospital in 1949.

Mayanna met Charlie Kopp in June 1950.  They were married on December 9, 1950, and spent their entire married life on the Kopp Family Ranch.

Mayanna is survived by children Patty Bowers (Wayne) of Terrebonne, OR; Richard Kopp, living on the Kopp Ranch southwest of Pilot Rock; Jeanne Westendorf (Jim) of Redmond, OR; Robert Kopp (Jeannie) of Kennewick, WA; and Ronald Kopp of Condon, OR; grandchildren Christina Oliver (Nathan), and great-grandchildren, Jackson, Jace and Jessa of Pendleton, OR; Ryan McPherson of Everett, WA; Eric Kopp (Karly) of LaGrande, OR; Kyle Kopp and great-grandchildren Brayden and Emersyn of West Richland, WA; step-grandson James “Max” Roush (Ashley), and great-grandchildren Kohl and Harper of Philomath, OR.

Mayanna was preceded in death by husband, Charlie Kopp in 1991, and grandson Patrick Kopp in 2003.

On September 21, 2002, Mayanna married long-time friend, Louie Porter.  Louie passed away September 12, 2007.

Mayanna served as the Umatilla County CowBelle’s president and on the statewide membership committee for the Oregon CowBelles; was a member of St. Helen’s Catholic Church; a member of the Umatilla County Historical Society and Heritage Station Museum; a life member of the Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Hall of Fame, and a founding charter member of the National WWII Museum.

Contributions may be made to the Umatilla County Historical Society, Umatilla County Cattlemen’s Association, American Cancer Society, or to a charity of choice.

A private graveside service will take place at Skyview Cemetery.  A Celebration of Life will be held at the Pilot Rock Community Center following the service.  The time and date of these events are yet to be determined.