The son of an Alabama mayor who shot himself after being outed as a cross-dresser paid tribute to his father, describing him as kind, considerate and “larger than life.”
Fred “Bubba” Copeland, 49, died after police approached him for a wellness exam Nov. 3, shooting himself in the head as they approached him.
Days earlier, images of him in women’s clothing, wigs and makeup were shared online, with claims he also posted “explicit trans porn” and used the identities of local women to create erotic fiction.
On Thursday, Copeland’s friends and family gathered at the First Baptist Church in Phoenix City, where Copeland was the senior pastor, was also mayor of neighboring Smiths Station and ran a grocery store.
Alabama mayor and pastor Fred “Bubba” Copeland was buried Thursday at the church where he was pastor in Phoenix City
Copeland died by suicide while making fun of his “hobby” and dressing up in drag as the alter ego “Brittini Blaire Summerlin.”
The pastor had secret social media accounts where he allegedly shared erotic trans fiction and transitioning memes he wrote that featured real people from his congregation. The mayor said his wife was aware of his online persona
Copeland is seen with his wife Angela, their daughters AbbyKate and Ally, and his son Carter
The father of three children – a son, Carter, from his first marriage and daughters AbbyKate and Ally from his second marriage, to Angela – was remembered as warm and generous, AL.com reported.
Carter Copeland told the congregation Thursday that the biggest lesson he learned from his father was “something he had so much trouble with.” He encouraged me to “make myself happy.”
Carter continued, “He told me that this was his way of ‘making people happy’ by cheering up as many people as he could throughout his day.”
He then shared how he witnessed this firsthand when he and his father went to McDonald’s and encountered an angry employee.
“My dad looked at her and told her — the craziest woman I’ve ever seen in my life — that her hair looked good,” Carter recalled.
“I was embarrassed, but she was smiling from ear to ear.
“And while that may not have been true, that was my father’s way of touching at least one person throughout his day.”
Carter said his father told him, “When you’re faced with obstacles or just terrible, terrible people, just rely on the Lord and fight with kindness and a pure heart.”
Carter added, “This is the greatest lesson my father ever taught me.”
Carter said he is grateful for his upbringing.
“I know my father made me strong, he taught me the right things,” he said.
“So I promise to get through this and fight to bring love into this terribly dark world.”
“I will choose happiness when others choose bitterness.”
“Dad, I want you to know that my world always began with you and will always end with you. Regardless of the hate, I will respond with love.”
Carter Copeland and his father are seen in Washington DC
Tributes to Bubba Copeland are pictured outside his church, First Baptist, in Phoenix City
Another speaker, the Rev. Jim Wooten, pastor of First United Methodist Church in Jackson, said the moment he met Copeland was “mythical” and burned into his memory.
“I remembered this larger-than-life figure emerging from a cloud of barbecue smoke with sweat pouring down his forehead,” Wooten said.
He said Copeland was “a delightful storyteller and a breath of fresh air.”
He added, “If there was one thing Bubba loved almost as much as his family, it was his city.”
He tearfully recounted Copeland’s struggle with his mental health, saying his friend had “this old black dog that was chasing us, this black dog of depression.”
He told those mourning, “Whatever difficulties you may be facing, you are not alone.”
“If you don’t have anyone near you to reach, dial 988 and enter the number into your phone. 9-8-8. It’s the suicide and crisis hotline. There is a caring person waiting to listen to you. “You are valuable, you have meaning, you are important.”
Copeland was remembered for his response to a local teenager’s suicide in 2019.
He put up signs around town that read, “You are worthy of love,” “Don’t give up,” and “You matter.”
David White, a friend of Copeland’s for 30 years, said he was “perhaps the hardest-working person I have ever met.”
He added: “This week’s tragedy will be made worse if we, his friends, do nothing.”
“The next time a friend finds himself the focus of hate, let’s all speak up a little sooner and a little louder to at least say, ‘That’s my friend.’ If we succeed, we can say we have learned.
“If these changes within us make our little part of this world a little kinder, a little more understanding, a little more loving toward one another, then we too will soon be able to say what Bubba said: ‘That’s not true.’ Good God?’
His online life became public on November 1, when local news website 1819 published the first of several articles in which he described posts as a “transgender curvy girl” under a pseudonym on Instagram and Reddit – with photos of him in women’s clothing and makeup.
After the revelation, the state Baptist organization said it was aware of the allegations of “unbiblical behavior” against the pastor.
A national radio broadcast also said Copeland should be ashamed because the Bible teaches that it is an “abomination” for a man to wear women’s clothing.
The father of three said he had been through “dark times” in messages to friends just days before his suicide
The 49-year-old had previously apologized to his congregation at the First Baptist Church in Phoenix City for any “embarrassment” caused by his private life
Copeland was also accused of using the names and photos of local residents, including a minor, in posts without permission, including the real name of a local businesswoman in a fictional story about a man who develops a deadly obsession with assuming her identity.
Another claim included that Copeland’s secret social media accounts also shared images of a local brother and sister that made it appear as if the boy had been transitioning.
Copeland told the news site that he dressed in women’s clothing to relieve stress but was not transgender.
He stood before his congregation on Nov. 1 to apologize, saying the photos taken in the privacy of his own home were an attempt at humor.
But just a few days later, the beloved priest was dead.
“I just want to ask you people who found it funny to publicly ridicule him.” Are you happy now? What crime did he commit?’ wrote Larry DiChiara, a former superintendent who knew Copeland from his time as a member of the county school board.
Chiara revealed on Facebook that Copeland was struggling in the days before his death.
DiChiara said he reached out to Copeland via text message last Thursday and the mayor responded that “it’s been a very dark few days.”
Copeland’s private online life became public in early November when the media published the first of several articles detailing posts he had written under a pseudonym on Instagram and Reddit
The married mayor and grocery store owner shot himself in the head after making fun of his social media personality
“When this story came out, it was already painful and hurtful to see it and know that this will cause a lot of heartache for Bubba and his family.”
“But as I read what was out there, it got worse and worse and I just saw a real ugliness in people and their comments,” DiChiara said.
Jack Drescher, clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University and author of “Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Gay Man,” said coming out can be a violent act and in this case “triggered a violent reaction.”
Drescher said people may have reasons to keep sexual or gender identities and behaviors, such as cross-dressing, secret because they feel like they won’t be accepted.
“It was probably a great shame and embarrassment to be outed like that,” Drescher said.