Rebecca Lipinski passed away on the morning of November 14, 2022, in Longmont, Colorado, after a brief bout with a sudden illness. Beccy was born on a farm in Cadiz, Ohio, on February 12, 1941. She was the third of ten children. After graduating from Cadiz High School in 1959, Beccy left Ohio for Minneapolis, Minnesota, to attend Humboldt Institute airline school. Upon her graduation, she joined Capitol Airlines in 1960 as a teletype operator at Washington National Airport. In 1962, after a brief stint in Atlanta with Capitol, Beccy met her future husband, Ted Lipinski (then recently employed by United Airlines), while they were both working at the airport.
In 1964, Beccy transitioned from Capitol to United Airlines and became a stewardess. After a long courtship, Ted and Beccy married in 1969 in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. She gave up flying the friendly skies upon the birth of her first son, Gregory, in 1970. Natalie followed in 1971, and Douglas in 1972. Being a mom to her boys was her top priority through their formative years. She respected hard work and strong ethics and instilled that in her children. She was quick to get them in line when she didn’t see them doing the right things!
Beccy was a soft speaker who never talked over anyone. She had a special way of listening and making people feel heard. She loved furniture and antiques (we’ll be dealing with them for quite some time) and would have reupholstered or refinished everything that came across her path if she wasn’t stopped. She was also an avid Uconn women’s basketball fan and would often arrange her schedule around being able to watch her team play.
Beccy will be remembered as a loyal friend, a loving, protective, and proud mother, a patient and devoted wife, and a woman who always put family first. She was adventurous and unafraid in life – she even returned to the skies at age 72 to jump out of a plane! She was fondly known as “the Sarge,” as she had a way of making her opinion known, sometimes making it clear it was the only one that mattered.
Rebecca was predeceased by her daughter Natalie (1971), her father Max Elbert Wallace (1974), her sister Faith Anne Knight (1993), her mother Phyllis Jane (Heavilin) Wallace (2006), and her husband Theodore (2020). She is survived by her two sons, Gregory (Corrin) Lipinski and Douglas (Melissa) Lipinski, and four beloved grandchildren, Aiden, Eli, Owen, and Gavin; and her siblings: Linda May, Jane Willis, Sandy Hoyte, Keith (Jayne) Wallace, Stan (Delma) Wallace, Melora (Roger) Mencer, Kevin (Pam) Wallace, and Tenley (Keith) Telfer.
A service to honor Rebecca’s life will be held on December 2, 2022, at Deersville Methodist Church. The service will begin with a visitation from 10:30 – 11:30 a.m., followed by a church and graveside service. She will be laid to rest beside her husband and daughter in Patterson Union Cemetery. Lunch after the service will be at Barrett’s school house, 38465 Brushy Fork Road, Cadiz, OH 43907. The family is being assisted by Clark-Kirkland-Barr Funeral Home, Cadiz, Ohio.
The memorial guestbook may be signed at www.clark-kirkland-barr.com.