William Kopplin

Bill Kopplin is retired from Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, and, although a long-time volunteer in public service during his career, since retirement he has devoted almost full-time to serving others. Among his activities, he has been particularly active in the Oklahoma Tree Bank Foundation, which plants trees on public lands and promotes the planting and care of trees statewide. He also serves as vice-chairman of its board of directors. He devotes two full days each week as a volunteer in the Tree Bank offices, composing letters and printed materials, answering telephones and giving advice to callers on species selection, placement and care of trees, and serving in all capacities where his help is needed.

Besides his two full days in the office, he gives numerous hours of service over a wide area in support of the efforts of the Foundation. He was creator of, and is the principal developer of a statewide Centennial Grove project, bringing about planting of groves of trees throughout Oklahoma, as part of Oklahoma’s Centennial of Statehood celebration. It is estimated that Bill Kopplin has given more than 3,000 volunteer hours to the Tree Bank, in addition to his public service activity at the present time; it is actually one of many of his public service projects.

He serves on the Citizens Advisory Committee to Will Rogers Park (largest public park) in Oklahoma City. He has served, as president of the Iris Society and Master Gardeners of Oklahoma, and it’s the Park Commissioner for his ward in Oklahoma City. In the past three years, Bill Kopplin, through a cooperative agreement with America the Beautiful was responsible for distributing more than a half-million flower bulb in Central Oklahoma. This came about because America the Beautiful acts as a clearinghouse for the nursery surplus from the White Flower Bulb Company, and Bill, as a volunteer for America the Beautiful, contacted several urban planners who were interested in having and using some of the bulbs.

In addition, Bill Kopplin is past president of Town Hall and the Classen High School Alumni Association in Oklahoma City. It is estimated that, since retirement as a Southwestern Bell Telephone Company executive, Bill has given more than 5,000 hours to public service.