Rae C. McNiel

McNiel, Rae Cochran, 78, passed away Tuesday, February 26, 2013 after battling ALS. Funeral Service will be at 2:00 P.M., Saturday, March 2, 2013, at Eastminster Presbyterian Church. Rae was born in Brockton, MA April 5, 1934 to Archie and Roz Cochrane who later moved their rapidly growing family to Billings, MT where she grew up, the oldest of 5 sisters; Martha, Katie, Rozy, and Jean. Her family life was filled with music, dramatic skits, education and the great outdoors. After graduating from Billings Senior High she obtained her B. A. in Education from Colorado University and married Bob McNiel, also from Billings. They raised 4 sons, Mark, Mike, Alan and Brian and moved frequently during Bobs sales career after serving in the Army. They lived in Milwaukee, WS, Baltimore, MD, and Rochester, NY before moving to Wichita in 1968. Raes last 45 years were spent in Wichita where her family came first above her many activities including; church, school, PTA, professional organizations, book clubs, the boys many sports, and her beloved friends. After the children were in school, she received her Masters degree in education from Wichita State and began her teaching career in Derby. She taught gifted education to students in every Derby school over the next 25+ years before retiring. She and Bob spent over 10 years retired together and enjoyed travel, their four sons and the boys large families including 12 grandchildren and one great grandchild. Survivors include: husband, Bob; son, Mark (children, Sarah (husband, Chris), David (wife, Jenn and daughter, Macy), Hannah); son, Mike and his wife, Cindy (children, Kadie (husband, Andrew), and twins Maggie and Jacob); son, Alan and his wife, Lisa (children, Anna-Marie (husband, Daniel), Max, and Alex); son, Brian and his wife, Francis (children, Collin, Landon Clark “LC”, and Cara). Rae will always be remembered as a loving and supporting wife, mother, and teacher. Downing Lahey Mortuary East.