Gamaliel Bradford Class of 1958
Hon. Martha Witherell Copithorne
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Family, yoga, meditation, reading, friends, swimming, bicycling, skiing, hiking, travel
I married David Copithorne (Lexington High School 1956, Colby College 1960) in 1961. We lived in New York City while he attended Columbia Law School, and then moved to New Hampshire in 1965. We have two sons: Brad born in 1964 and Mark born in 1968. Both boys now live on the West Coast in the Bay area. David died in 1999 after a long struggle with cancer and the after effects of the cure. I have one grandson, named David after his grandfather, a darling two year old.
I graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1962 with a major in history. When my sons were 8 and 12, I began law school at Franklin Pierce Law Center in Concord, NH, graduating in 1979. A very important part of my informal education was my involvement in the women's movement beginning in the early 70's. It was a heady time: consciousness raising, conferences, workshops, politics, reading, discussing.
While in NYC, I programmed computers for Equitable Life. We were not allowed near the huge IBM 705 computers. Everything was submitted on key punch cards. When the programs malfunctioned, we received a print out of memory, and had to figure out from there. Memory was so tight for what we wanted to achieve, that much of the programming was done in actual, rather than in Basic. It was fun. I experienced sexual discrimination, because it was assumed that as a woman, I would leave to have babies. They were right. David was hired by a small firm in Laconia, NH and we settled down in Gilford to raise our children. I did a lot of volunteer work including the League of Women Voters and politics. I was George McGovern's county chair for the New Hampshire primary. I began working part time with a program that assisted women on welfare to go to college. We were affiliated with Belknap College, a small local college. We expanded the program to other colleges in New Hampshire, and eventually ended up as employees of the University System. The job involved counseling, advocacy and administration. I got the bug, and decided to go on to graduate school. I took a couple of courses towards my MBA, but decided law school was a better choice for me. When I graduated from law school, my husband was in solo practice, and I joined his firm. First in my class to make partner. My practice was primarily family law, representing women, children and men in divorce and custody disputes, as well as abuse and neglect, domestic violence cases. In 1991, I was appointed to the marital bench in NH, as a marital master for the Superior Court. I have been there since. In July 2002, I began to work half time, sitting in alternate weeks. Semi-retirement is wonderful. I have been active in the community in mental health, human rights, programs against domestic violence and land conservation.
Thanks to Walter and Dottie for taking the time and energy to pull us back together.
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