Councilman Stephen Burker was pleasantly surprised by a recent call he received from Ruth Thomson. Thomson’s husband, Roger, served Coplay as a police officer for 25 years before he retired as acting police chief.

“When everyone started talking about the plaza, I wanted to do something, but I never quite knew what would be appropriate,” Thomson said. “When I read about the gazebo and all the work that everyone volunteered, I thought it would be good to do something at the plaza.”

Thomson was a stay-at-home mom while her husband served the borough. She raised her children and kept the same house in Coplay after Roger died.

“Roger had to work a varied schedule, so I had to be home with the kids. And you can’t have kids wandering off and getting into trouble if your husband is a policeman in a small town,” she said. “This gift is sort of paying back because Coplay took care of us during all those years.”

Everyone who knew Roger had a good word to say.

“He picked me up a couple of times when I was in my late teens, but I had the most respect for him,” Burker said.

Ruth was equally proud of her husband.

“Now when I see people and we talk about him, they always get a little smile and tell me a story about what he did for them. I don’t think you could ask for better memories,” she said.

Roger came to Coplay after being in Allentown.

“He said to me after working in Coplay a few weeks, ‘I think these people must all be related; they all know each other.’ I thought it was great,” Thomson said. “He was happy to be working in Coplay.”

She was not the only contributor, though; everyone in the family wanted to get in on the gift.

“They told me the cost for a clock was going to be $30,000, but I couldn’t do that, so I said we could go with $10,000. (Councilman) Charlie Sodl promised me that they could raise the rest of the money,” Thomson said.

Sodl has promised a fundraising campaign and a dedication plaque at the base of the clock.

Mayor Dean Molitoris was magnanimous in his thanks.

“I feel so proud to be a resident of Coplay and part of the team working hard to make this already-great town even better. The generous gift from the Thomson family is a fine example of the tremendous pride that so many residents have about this borough.

“We want to improve our community, so we can keep the quality of life we have in Coplay,” Molitoris said.