Rebecca Wright Coote

Rebecca "Beck" Vermelle Wright Coote was born on December 31st, 1935 to the union of Winifred (Champion) Wright and Samuel Oscar Wright Jr. in the family home located at 1008 Campbell Street in Camden, South Carolina. She was their first born of their two daughters. Beck departed this life on December 1st , 2019 at New Paradise Assisted Living Group Home in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Raised in the United Methodist tradition, Beck was very active in Trinity United Methodist Church in Camden, South Carolina at an early age and into young adulthood. She participated in Bible Study classes, attended youth conferences and in her early twenties started programs for young people and teenagers who attended Trinity. She really did love working with the youth. Later in her career she would go on to mentor hundreds of students in Summer Youth Programs and internships in New York City including Harlem and Jamaica, Queens.
Rebecca attended Jackson Elementary School and then went on to attend and graduate from the prestigious Boylan-Haven Mather Academy in the early 1950's. She was a standout athlete and majorette while at Mather Academy and was extremely proud of the trophies and recognition she received. Rebecca excelled in basketball, tennis and track and field with her top event being the high jump. Rebecca attended her first year of college at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta Georgia and then enrolled in Claflin College in Orangeburg, South Carolina where she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education. It was at Claflin where she pledged Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated and was initiated in the Gamma Chi Chapter on April 21, 1956. After being bypassed for several promotions, Rebecca was motivated to complete her Master's degree from an Ivy League institution, Columbia University with a major in gerontology in 1968 during the era of protests against the Vietnam war. Her philosophy on attaining her advanced degree was that "It is better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it."
Although Beck did not want to be a teacher, she started her career in the Camden school system. Her professional options were limited in South Carolina during the Jim Crow era. She moved to New York and changed careers. Rebecca worked for Goldwater Hospital, a long term chronic care facility on
Roosevelt Island where she was a recreational therapist for individuals who lived with developmental disabilities. Her next job landed her at Queens Hospital Center in their Recreation Department. She managed therapeutic recreation programs for patients, staff and volunteers. One of her many achievements was being a founding Board Member of the Municipal Hospital Basketball League. Each public hospital in New York City had a basketball
team made up of workers employed at the hospitals. Then due to budget cuts around 1976 when the city almost defaulted her position was cut. With a Masters degree specializing in gerontology Rebecca was hired to lead the Activities Department at Greater Harlem Nursing Home. She retired after 17 years there.
Rebecca was married twice but of all the accolades she received over her lifetime of almost 84 years, she was most and very proud of her two children she raised, Vanessa and Keith along with the special relationships she nurtured with her nephews Eric and Bryan and her younger cousin Valerie.
Beck was an outstanding cook and many got to enjoy her baked goods, especially her chocolate chip cookies and the infamous caramel cake. She had a special bond with Vanessa's friends and enjoyed almost 10 years of surprise Mother's Day trips to Las Vegas, Toronto, Washington, DC, Memphis and San Antonio to name a few.
Rebecca was loyal, compassionate, fierce and at times fearless. She loved the Lord, family and life in general. She enjoyed different things at different stages in her life. In her 20's and 30's she enjoyed entertaining, dancing and playing cards, sewing, spending quality time with her sister Winnie Bee and her husband Jack and playing with her beloved nephews. Once she bought the boys a swimming pool and had it placed at the bottom of the swing set that had a slide. Sliding down into the pool on a hot summer day in Dover, Delaware was a lot of fun until Beck went down the slide, into the pool and straight through the side of the pool. She and everyone laughed so hard until it hurt.
By the time she hit her fabulous forties Beck liked traveling to interesting places especially if shopping was involved. She discovered outlet shopping in Lancaster, PA and Secaucus, NJ. and Cancellation Shoe Store in Dover where there was no sales tax. She also enjoyed reading magazines, decorating for Christmas, cooking and watching sports of any kind.
Rebecca Vermelle Wright Coote was preceded in death by her parents, son Keith Samuel Coote and her husband Charles Eugene Coote Sr. She leaves to mourn and celebrate her homegoing: her daughter, Vanessa Miche'le Wright Adams of Scottsdale, Arizona (Thomas W. Evans of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida); her son, Charles E. Coote Jr. (Pam) of Greensboro, North Carolina; her sister Winnifred Beatrice Bossard of Dover, Delaware; her nephews Eric Kurtis Bossard (JoAnne) of Lansdale, Pennsylvania and Bryan Jackson Bossard (Kimber) of Dover, Deleware; Great Nephews Brandon Bossard, Justin Bossard, Connor Bossard, Xen Bossard, Xyon Bossard; Cousins: Hattie Mills, Edna Harris, Samuel E. Wright, Wilhemenia Lyles Drakeford, Florence
Darby, Shirley Brown, Richard Darby Jr; cousin-in-law: Katherine Wright and all of their children, along with many other friends and relatives.


Omega Omega services will take place at Collins Funeral Home, Inc at 6:30 PM on Friday, December 13, 2019. The family will receive friends from 6 PM until 8 PM on Friday, December 13, 2109. Funeral services will take place at 11 AM at Camden First United Methodist Church on Saturday, December 14, 2019. Burial will follow in Cedars Cemetery.