Obituary of Laura Ann Urban

Laura Urban, an almost lifelong resident of New Jersey, passed away at the age of 57 in her home in Somerville.  

Laura is survived by her mother, Gerry Goehring, and siblings Thomas Goehring, Daniel Goehring, and Stacie Beaber; her nephew Brandon; her children, Rachel Kopp and David Urban; her grandchildren, Cristian and Tyler Kopp.  She is predeceased by her beloved father, Edward Goehring.  

Laura was born in Pennsylvania but spent almost all of her childhood in Piscataway, NJ where she attended primary school, graduated high school, and earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering at Rutgers University.  Laura was an avid gymnast, swimmer, softball player, and rummy 500 card shark in her youth.  She also loved being on the Color Guard Rifle Squad in the Piscataway Marching Band and marched in famous parades like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and traveled with the band to Ireland.  She volunteered at hospitals as a candy striper and loved helping people.  She was a Cobol Software Engineer by profession, spending the bulk of her career at Chubb Insurance Company where she made many of her lifelong friends.  Some of her hobbies included reading Danielle Steel books, walking in nature with friends, and scrap booking her favorite memories.  She loved the drama of her soap operas and the vastness of the ocean.  Much of the summer, you could find her down at the Jersey Shore.  Laura also loved to spend time with her family in Colorado.  This included her parents, her brother Dan, her sister, Stacie, brother-in-law, Brad, and nephew, Brandon.  While she preferred the beach, she also loved the mountains and Denver metro area.          

Most of all, her greatest joys were her children, grandchildren, and nephew.  She was a devoted single mother who seamlessly juggled full-time work and parenting and was able to give her all to everything she did.  She was involved in her children’s sports and extracurricular activities and never missed a game or event.  When her sister needed her help due to health problems, she flew out and lived with her in Colorado for over a year and helped her with raising her nephew.  Even more than her children and nephew, Laura would tell you her grandchildren were her greatest gift.  She could never get enough of them and cherished every moment she got.  Devoted Mother, Grandmother, and Aunt were her most proud titles.

A Service of Remembrance will be held on Friday, June 18th at at 11:00 am at Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church, 321 Mine Brook Road, Bernardsville, NJ 07924. To send condolences to the family please visit www.knolldevoefh.com