Melissa Williams Cooper Steidl

Melissa Williams Cooper Steidl was a beloved spouse, mother, daughter, sister, grandmother, aunt and friend.

Born on September 15, 1961, she grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut, where she enjoyed figure skating and swimming. At Greenwich High School, she played viola in the orchestra and was captain of the color guard in the marching band.

After graduating from The University of Vermont, she led a career that reflected her superlative ability to make order of chaos, including assisting a celebrated Madison Avenue Advertising executive, managing a recording studio, and founding her own bookkeeping business, which she managed for two decades.

She married Karl Steidl in 1988, and they raised a daughter, Lindsay, and a son, Kurt, in Ridgefield, Connecticut, where they lived for 25 years, always active in school, church, and community committee work. Ever devoted to supporting her children’s interests, she traveled many thousands of miles to horse shows and basketball games around the country.

After both children married and started families of their own, Melissa and Karl moved to North Carolina, where Melissa continued her longtime membership in the P.E.O sisterhood and became a Paul Harris Fellow in the local Rotary Club.

Throughout her life she was an enthusiastic world traveler; Russia, South America, the British Isles, the Mediterranean, Scandinavia and most all of Europe were among the many places she explored.

She is survived by Karl Steidl, her husband of 38 years, Lindsay Beadon (Christopher), Kurt Steidl (Niki), grandchildren Ella Beadon and Daphne Steidl, and siblings Thea Cooper and Jeffrey Cooper. She will be dearly missed.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, June 10th at 10:00 AM at The Ridgebury Congregational Church, 605 Ridgebury Road, Ridgefield, CT, with reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to P.E.O. International or Rotary International.