Ronine "Roni" Ruth Broeffle

Ronine “Roni” Ruth Broeffle passed away on October 31, 2009, after a long battle with health issues. Roni was born in Los Angeles, California, on February 21, 1939, the only child of Ruth and Robert Rausch. (Ruth Rausch was a former reporter for the Grants Pass Daily Courier.) She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Bill Broeffle.
In 1949, the family moved to Cave Junction, which was a great place for growing up. Roni graduated from Illinois Valley High School in 1957. During her youth, Roni was involved in many youth activities, including Job’s Daughters, eventually becoming Honored Queen. For many years, Roni was actively involved with the IVHS Alumni Association.
Following her high school graduation, Roni moved to Redding, CA to attend Shasta Junior College, where she met Howard Elder. They were married in 1958. Roni and Howard had three children: Scott, Stacy, and Sonja. Fourteen years later, Roni and Howard were divorced. In early 1975, Roni became reacquainted with Bill Broeffle (deceased March 18, 2003). Later that year, she and her children moved to Grants Pass and she and Bill were married on September 20, 1975. The union brought three more daughters to the table: Lore, Lisa, and Carol. We were the Broeffle Bunch.
In 1977, she again became involved with Job’s Daughters, eventually serving as Guardian on the local level and as a state officer. Her children were active in DeMolay and Job’s Daughters.
Roni’s career started in the lumber industry, but changed to the paving, sand, and gravel industry. Upon arriving in Grants Pass, she went to work for Copeland Paving, Sand & Gravel, and remained an advocate of mining and served as one of Copeland’s historians. In over 34 years of employment, she served three generations of the Copeland / Ausland families. She was heard to say several times, “I couldn’t have had a better job.”
Roni was a second generation director for the Board of Directors at SOFCU. A volunteer position she held for over 21 years. She was a member of the Grants Pass Zonta Club for over 15 years. She served on the board for all of those years.
Edgewater Christian Fellowship was her church of choice.
She had a passion for yardening (yes, yardening), but was limited the past few years due to failing health. She spent time with her faithful buddy, Bailey-Sue, the cutest white lab ever. She also loved movies or anything without a commercial.
Survivors include Lore (Richard) Heller of Virginia, Lisa (Ed) Lee of Oregon, Scott Elder of Missouri, Carol Broeffle of Oregon, Stacy (David) Smith of California, and Sonja (Chuck) Latapie of Texas; three granddaughters: Mikaela and Nicole Elder, and Shayla Latapie; seven grandsons: Colin, Adam (Megan), and Nicholas Latapie, Aaron and Noah Lee, and Kyle and Kenneth Smith; her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jim and Lillian Broeffle, nephews, Ken and Doug, and niece Renee; her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Fred and Nancy Bailey, nephew Craig (Terry) and niece Paula (Todd).
Please join us for a celebration of Roni’s life on Saturday, November 14, 2009, 2-5 p.m. Location will be the Arts Building at the Josephine County Fairgrounds.
Contributions can be made to the Grants Pass Zonta Club Foundation, P.O. Box 1615, Grants Pass, OR 97528, the IVHS Alumni and Friends, P.O. Box 2086, Cave Junction, OR 97523, or the charity of your choice.