John Robert Cupps

John Robert (JR) Cupps, 81, of Bryan, TX passed away peacefully on Sunday, February 2, 2025 at his home. 

 John is survived by his wife of 42 years, Katharine Cupps, his daughter Diedra (Rickey) Teer, and granddaughter, Cori Teer. 

 He was preceded in death by his parents, Elmer and Frances Cupps, his first wife, Sandra Kay Adams and his brother, William Cupps.

 In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to his favorite local organizations: the Rio Brazos Audubon Society and the Brazos Valley Chapter of Texas Master Naturalists or to the Caring Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Church. 

  Born and raised in rural Eden,Texas, John lived a simple life, exemplifying love, kindness, family and hard work. He excelled at sports and was selected to the All-West Texas football team. He later enthusiastically served as a youth football coach for the Sugar Land Cowboys.

 He was a skilled craftsman, a practical genius, and sharp-witted, with 20/10 vision and extraordinary observation skills. He delighted in exploring nature, pursuing various outdoor activities including fishing, hunting, birding, cave exploration, camping, eco-travel and vegetable gardening. He loved people and all animals, including his childhood pet raccoon. He had a gift for storytelling and could make people laugh. 

 John worked as a journeyman machinist and tooling expert for Johnston/Schlumberger and the Continental Can Company before moving to Washington to work for the Boeing Company, where he earned a reputation for taking airplane tooling and parts inspections seriously and stopping production if anything was out of specification. He received top-level security clearance for aerospace defense contracts.

 Upon retirement, John returned to his beloved Texas, and was active in the Rio Brazos Audubon Society and Texas Master Naturalists. He enjoyed working at educational booths for children and habitat restoration projects. John also served on the property committee for his church. 

 His Celebration of Life will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Brazos Valley, 1719 E 29th St, Bryan, TX 77802 on March 29 at 4 pm.