Former Port Orchard Mayor Lary Coppola, 73, dies after sudden cancer diagnosis

As a businessman, elected official, car enthusiast and grandfather, Lary Coppola will be deeply missed, say those from across the Kitsap Peninsula who have known him for decades.

Coppola, executive director of the Port of Allyn and a former mayor of Port Orchard, died Saturday morning at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma several weeks after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, said Dee Coppola, Lary's wife.

"This was shocking," Dee Coppola said. "People talked to him two weeks ago, and we didn't even realize how sick he was."

Many heard the sad news from Dee Coppola's post on social media, with over 320 replies left from friends mourning the loss and sending condolences.

"It's a tragic loss for our community," said Cary Bozeman, former mayor of Bremerton, current Port of Bremerton commissioner and friend of Coppola's for more than 20 years. "We don't have a lot of people like Lary Coppola around and we need him, so I'm gonna miss him."

"I still can't believe he's gone. It's just all happened so quickly," Jan Angel, a former Washington State Senator and former Kitsap County commissioner, said. Angel had planned to meet up with Coppola recently. "People have to remember. Do it now. You may not get a second chance."

A Florida native comes to Kitsap and gets into business

Originally from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Coppola came to Washington as an electrician 40 years ago and liked the area so much that he decided to stay. In 1975, he moved to Gig Harbor and switched his career to real estate photography. He took photos of homes for sale for magazines at Multiple Listing Service and eventually owned four real estate magazines in the area.

In 1986, the Coppolas moved to Manchester, where they founded a company, Wet Apple Media, in 1987.

"I said, well, where did that name come from? He said, I know New York is the big apple, but this has got to be the wet apple," Dee recalled how Lary named his publishing company.

Wet Apple Media published Westsound Home & Garden and the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal. Established in 1988, the monthly Business Journal magazine covered business topics in the region and existed as one of their titles under the Wet Apple Media brand until a 2014 sale to the Kitsap Sun, which continued to publish the monthly journal through the summer of 2022.

In 2000, Coppola sold his regional real estate magazine franchise, Homes & Land.

Currently, Wet Apple Media publishes West Sound Magazine and Design | Build Magazine on the Kitsap Peninsula.

Coppola's political career in Port Orchard

In 2007, Coppola defeated Tom Saunders to become mayor of Port Orchard, with nearly 70 percent of the vote.

During his time as the mayor of Port Orchard from 2008 to 2012, he fostered the annexation of the Fred Meyer property and McCormick Woods into the city, which expanded economic development for the region and attracted new homes.

With Coppola's public relations and marketing skills, the city received a lot of regional attention under his leadership, Bozeman described.

"He loved Port Orchard," Bozeman said. "He was a huge cheerleader for it. And as mayor, he really put it (Port Orchard) on the map in the region."

"What I admired about him was the fact that he would listen to people and he would act according to what the people wanted and needed. And I think that's what we both fought for," Angel said.

In 2010, the mayor was arrested for DUI when he was reported to have blocked a vehicle of a person delivering newspapers near his home on Rockwell Avenue. Coppola applauded Port Orchard police for calling in a Washington State trooper to handle the investigation "to avoid the appearance of any favoritism or conflict of interest."

After losing the 2011 election by five to challenger Tim Matthes, Coppola said goodbye to public office.

"Other people wanted Larry to run for things and he just said no, I've done my time," Dee said.

Public service to the Port of Allyn

Since 2015, Coppola worked as the executive director of the Port of Allyn, responsible for the day-to-day operations of the port. As executive director he was innovative and always sought ways to improve the organization, Port of Allyn Commissioner Judy Scott said.

"He kept us well-informed and was forthright in his dealings," Scott recalled. "Lary was always learning, and he loved working with the Port and staff and all the challenges it offered. He was willing to take risks, yet they were carefully thought out."

The sad news left employees in shock and disbelief, as Coppola was working on getting everything in order and was going to retire, Scott said.

"It's just been so untimely," Scott said. "He will be greatly missed."

Besides his career in Port Orchard and the Port of Allyn, the longtime business owner was also remembered as an auto reviewer and car enthusiast. According to the Northwest Automotive Press Association (NWAPA), he served in several executive offices of NWAPA and reviewed several hundred cars over the past three decades, for years through a regular column in the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal.

"All of us at Northwest Automotive Press Association — NWAPA are saddened by the news that our past president Lary Coppola has passed away," NWAPA posted on its social media page. "May his memory be a blessing."

Lary and Dee raised a stepdaughter and a grandson. As their grandson, Bryce, was heavily into sports as a kid, Coppola was well known to spend time on the sidelines and was a baseball umpire for years, Dee Coppola said.

Dee Coppola said she'll plan a "bon voyage party" with food and drinks for Lary and those who knew him, as her husband would have wanted a celebration rather than a funeral.

"There'll be plenty of food. And we'll buy the first beer," Dee said.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Former Port Orchard Mayor Lary Coppola remembered as a leader