I met Beth in Rota, Spain in the mid-late 90's when our husband's were stationed there.  KC had a rank of O-4 to my husband's rank of O-3 at the time- and while it seemed the norm for higher rank wives to keep to themselves, Beth did not subscribe to that and was a friend to EVERYONE.  

Maybe it was our love of shopping- or finding new places to explore, but Beth and I hit it off immediately and together we helped the Spanish economy along the way (sorry KC).  Taking her mini-van so we'd have ample room for our purchases, we took mini-trips to Marbella to enjoy the city and find the perfect non-touristy shops; traveled to Valencia to tour the Lladro factory; and explored the Spanish White Villages searching for tiles, rugs, and other cool finds.  

On our adventures, I loved hearing about her travels, her time in Norway (I will always remember the matching Nordic sweaters), her adventures at Lake Wallenpaupack (I had spent time as a child there and was shocked that someone else had heard of it), and her and KC's plans for where they'd go next with their girls.   

One time I had a friend from the US visit who was diabetic and her insulin broke on the tile floor.  Beth drove my friend all over the area looking for an open pharmacy where she could get a replacement (not easy in Spain in the 90's!).  Beth was that kind of person to friends and strangers- generous, loving, and on a mission.  

Beth was such a wonderful friend, mentor, travel companion, and yes- shopping buddy- who had the biggest heart and warmest smile.  My only regret is that we didn't have cell phones back then and photos are few and far between.  I'm sure if we had them we'd have some smiling selfies in front of all our favorite places and I so miss not having that!  I am, however, forever grateful that our paths crossed and I will treasure those memories forever.  

Sending love and prayers,
Missy Fletcher

I met Beth in college. We were home economic buddies. She was friendly, considerate, generous, and kind. Two memories stand out among the many. First, in a textile class, we were given a set of  criteria and, with permission of the manager,  needed to go to a local department store and analyze the workmanship of the clothing. As soon as we entered the store, we got enamored with the analysis and neglected to ask permission. The manager complained to our professor and Beth and I guiltily owned up. It was maybe the first time either of us got into trouble. 

However, the real expression of Beth's support as a friend came when I needed to prepare a week's worth of vegetarian meals for an independent study project I was conducting (back before it was cool to be vegetarian and colleges provided). Beth stayed up an entire night with me preparing foods and we finished at dawn.

After college, Beth's life was fun to follow; she was always seemed to be up to something new and unique. The Hood-alums were fortunate to reconnect after raising our children and we had several fun get-togethers. Beth was still full of adventurous stories.

My life has been enriched by Beth's love and friendship.


Beth and I became friends and family because of our kids, Tom and Julie.  We met on the weekend Tom asked Beth and KC if he could marry their daughter.  However, knowing both for the two days prior I knew Beth to be full of life and laughter never once seeing her without a smile!  We planned a wedding together and that brought us closer.  She was so thoughtful and included me in all wedding things - especially shopping for Julie's dress and also invited me to Kristina's Bridal Shower the next year!   In three years we managed to visit each other 9 times; incredible for just being "in-laws".  If you know Beth you know you are not "just" anything to her, you are a friend.  I loved calling and talking to her regularly, and Facetiming her when I had a sewing problem and she could identify it over the phone or when I was walking around the yard and had to show her a KY sunset.  What we talked about wasn't important; it was just sharing time together after work.  I miss my  calls, I miss not seeing Beth but I am so glad I was able to know and experience Beth Darroch Coggins!

When I was around 8 years old, I went for a walk with my Aunt Beth around Newton Lake in Haddon Township, NJ, where my grandparents were living at the time. While enjoying a conversation on our walk, we encountered some of those brown, hard, spiky seed balls that fall off of the Sweet Gum trees onto the ground. I didn’t have many fears as a kid, but for some reason, I was convinced that the spikes of the seeds would go through my shoes and into my skin. Aunt Beth explained that the seeds would not hurt me and guided me through this childhood fear, with the same gentleness I knew my grandma, her mother, to have. I stepped on the spiky seed ball and painlessly crushed it.  That was the first fear I recall conquering, and I am grateful for this lesson. I learned a lot from Aunt Beth, who showed only optimism when facing a stage 4 cancer diagnosis. Her faith and optimism were never defeated. Aunt Beth joined my grandparents in God’s kingdom, having conquered life. 

A Great Soul serves
everyone all the time.
A Great Soul never dies
It brings us together
again & again. 
RIP Beth. You Are A Great Soul
2 Thessalonians 3:16 
Our deepest sympathies to 
Kc Coggins Family & Darroch Family
Diane..
Schwartz & Madden Family

I cannot express how grateful I am to have attended Beth’s memorial service and Celebration of Life afterwards. Beth was loved by so many people, including family, friends, and colleagues. I would like to extend my heartfelt sympathy and prayers to her amazing family as they begin to move forward without her, and I hope that the memories they built together will help keep her spirit alive in the years ahead. 


Beth and I met when our husbands were stationed together on the USS Kitty Hawk. We had so much in common, it really was an instant friendship.  Our daughters were the same age and spent quite a bit of time playing together.  And then we each added a member to our respective families.  

Beth was the consummate hostess.  Our families had numerous get togethers and she took the time to acquaint me with the greater Philadelphia area. We then transitioned to the west coast where we continued to keep each other entertained.  

Over the years, we have kept in touch, exchanging Christmas cards and pictures of our kids. 

I always admired her crafting skills. She was absolutely gifted and made the most beautiful sweaters.  Mostly, though, she was kind. I will miss her. 

I came across this picture today from Gary’s retirement party. It was fun acting goofy with our homemade photo booth. You will be missed and always thought of lovingly.  

Beth was very excited about moving this couch into her new basement apartment here in Frederick.  Her dad had come to help her move some of the larger things.  Curt and the Reverend worked and worked and worked.......and no matter how they twisted and turned that couch, it would not go down these outdoor steps into the apartment.  It would have been great if we could have unscrewed the legs, but there were no screws.  So Curt went back to our apartment and we sawed the legs off of the couch.  Beth’s couch looked great in her apartment..it was just very low to the ground.  I think we wound up putting it on cinderblocks.  

We are personally devastated  by Beth’s passing.  She was always that friend who was such a positive light.  When we spoke to her..or saw her..it was like no time had passed. I have a pair of socks that she knitted me that I treasure. 

KC, Kristina and Julie, she was so brave and she couldn’t of had better care.  Love you guys and we remember you in our prayers at night.  

Always, Peggy and Curt 

Beth was a remarkable woman who genuinely touched all the lives around her.  Her ability to maintain strength and positivity even during the darkest of times was amazing and inspiring.  I loved getting to know her the last few years and learning all about her family and travel adventures.  She had a wonderful way of sharing her stories that created a vivid picture and genuine emotion.  I truly feel blessed to have known her.   

Beth and I were best friends for more than 50 years - starting with summers together at the beach in Mattituck when we were kids. I have so many wonderful memories of our many adventures together, as kids and adults with spouses and children.  Mattituck, Philadelphia, San Diego, Whidbey Island, Spain, Gibraltar, Norway (including the venues at Lillehammer before the Olympics - photo is from our Bobsled run!),  Denmark (including the sweater shop at Hillerod and the trip to Bornholm), and our "girls'" trips to the glass district of Sweden and our search for the Northern lights in Iceland!  And I treasured our year living three miles apart in Virginia. Beth, you were more than a sister to me, and I love you dearly. XOXO RIP

When Beth and KC moved to Southlake and I saw them in church one Sunday, I immediately felt drawn to Beth.  As I sat and listened to the sermon, my mind might have wandered a little as I sat behind them and determined to get up quickly after the service and go introduce myself to Beth.  I could FEEL it - we were meant to be friends.  

Beth loved me through a difficult time in my life, as I lost both of my parents.  My father to a long term illness where he lost his dignity and my mother, who was suddenly whisked up to Heaven one night in her sleep.  

Beth helped me one winter when my mother came from Michigan to live with us in Texas  - the first season she had without my father.  My mother was a knitter.  I wasn’t.  I wanted my mother to make friends - not just as my mother, but as her own person, too.  I called Beth and she and my mother started a “prayer shawl group” at our church.  Beth came over to our house each Tuesday night and she and my mother taught ladies to knit.  Beth bought a book and read to us the meaning behind the shawls we knit, helped us to compose the note that would go with each shawl we gave, and then she and my mother would patiently fix the mistakes we new knitters made to get us back on track.  

When my mother passed so suddenly, Beth was the first one at my doorstep to bring me a shawl to comfort me - one that she herself had knit!  

I have so many wonderful memories of Beth. She was a great listener. She was so kind and funny. I will miss her.  Beth, Will, and I shared room 55 at the old Griffin building, we called ourselves the Dream Team of 55! I have some great memories from our time together in that room. 

Beth is my sister, so how do I even begin with memories?  The time we were clamming in the middle of the bay and both got stung by the jellyfish?  Teaching me to sew and bake?  The taunting and the teasing (both ways!) Most of all the love. Through it all, we shared a sisterly love that was instilled in us by some very wise and loving parents. Thank you for being my sister, Beth. Love and miss you forever. 

I worked with/for Beth when I first came to work at Griffin MS. She was always smiling and encouraging when she interacted with me. Love to hear her tell stories about her shoes and her daughters.she had such an interesting life I discovered from the memorial.  Quite an adventurer. I went to a gathering at her house once. She had the department over. The first thing she showed me was her cats! Knowing my cat fettish.... it was precious. Such a sweet soul. Glad she’s not in pain and walking with her family and Jesus. God bless you guys

Beth was a classmate at Hood College. In all my years I can truly say I never met a kinder person.  She had a gentle soul, and it touched everyone she met. So grateful that, after many years, I had the chance to reconnect with her. My deepest condolences are with her family and those who loved her. She will be dearly missed. 

Beth and I worked together at Griffin Middle School. She helped with the special education students in my classroom when I taught 8th grade. We connected because my siblings and I grew up in Southlake, graduating from Carroll ISD, and my family also lived in Versailles, KY for many years before Texas! She always told stories of her daughters, and took over a motherly role for me while we worked together (my parents had moved to Memphis at this point). I loved hearing about her girls! We are all actually very, very close in age! Beth cared so much about others and always asked about things happening in our lives, she lit up the room with her smile and it was impossible not to be drawn to her. Her love for students knew no bounds. 

Beth was my science 8 co-teacher for many years.  She helped with the lesson planning, worked with all the students, not just the ones designated as hers, and assisted wherever and whenever available.  I remember she loved shoes and yarn.  She had a pair of turquoise, 2 inch heals delivered to school because she knew KC would give her "the look" if those shoes were delivered to the house.  I just laughed, because husbands and wives do something similar.  
I enjoyed working with Beth.  She was well traveled, smart, compassionate and more than anything a loving person.  

Dearest Coggins family, 

It was heartbreaking and shocking to hear of Beth’s passing as we never knew she was sick. The memorial service was beautiful and these two daughters who were so little the last time we saw them, spoke so eloquently about their mom. You have all been in our hearts & prayers as you live this new normal without your mom and your wife. We look forward to seeing you in Hawaii soon. 
With much Aloha, 
Sharon and Bill Dodge 

KC and family,
     It's hard to express how sorry I am to lose Beth. She was a wonderful friend and she will be missed.
     While it's impossible to choose a favorite memory, one that stands out was the weekend we came to visit at your fabulous place in Pagosa Springs. Beth smiled the whole weekend as we enjoyed skiing, snowmobiling, and hot tubbing, and I was so honored to be included in her 60th birthday celebration. 
     Your family is in my thoughts and prayers as we all grieve her loss.
     Donna Mecca

My beautiful wife, Beth Coggins, passed away April 13, 2021, following a courageous, 16 month battle with Colon Cancer. Our two daughters-- Kristina Coggins and Julie Anne -- were with me at Beth's bedside as she peacefully departed this life. Though we will miss her greatly, we rejoice that Beth is no longer in pain and is in Heaven along with her parents-- Rev Jim and Trudy Darroch -- and other loved ones who have preceded her in death.

Beth and I met at the Apollon Palace Hotel in Athens, Greece on December 16, 1985. I was deployed to Athens flying reconnaissance missions over the Mediterranean. Beth was there as a DOD contractor training hospital personnel on a new software application. Though we only overlapped for about three days, the chemistry was there. I visited Beth in DC in Jan 1986 and she came to Spain for three weeks in the early Spring. While the fleet and USAF were bombing Libya in April, Beth and I were hanging out on the Costa Del Sol. I asked her to marry me that week and we tied the knot July 25, 1987, with her Dad officiating at his church in Audobon, NJ.

Beth was the perfect Navy wife, able to juggle the demands of raising children and managing a household while putting up with a husband who was frequently gone, and more frequently immature.  Beth was adept at unpacking boxes and making a wonderful home, near and far.  We started in Point Mugu and then moved to Philadelphia, San Diego, Oslo, Rota (Spain), Whidbey Island, San Diego, Whidbey Island, DC and finally Copenhagen.  After the Navy, we continued as nomads living in Vestal, NY and three homes in the DFW area.  In 2012, we finally stopped moving and settled in Prosper, TX.

Beth was an amazing mother who lived for her two girls.  She stayed at home with them for several years and devoted most of her energy to sewing dresses and knitting sweaters for the girls.  When our youngest-- Julie Anne -- started school, Beth began substitute teaching, first at Oak Harbor (WA) Elementary and then Copenhagen International School.  Once Kristina Coggins began college, Beth returned to the classroom on a full-time basis and taught Special Education at Griffin Middle School in The Colony (TX).  After our kids were finished with college, Beth resumed working as a substitute teacher in Prosper (TX).
Beth loved to travel and was always willing to try something new.  During our 33+ years of marriage, we managed to live in Norway, Spain and Denmark, as well as California, New Jersey, Washington, Virginia, New York and Texas.  Since 1987, we visited 49 states (sorry ND) and nine Canadian Provinces together.  Three European assignments provided us the time to experience things that most tourists don't get to see.  My Navy and industry careers enabled us to visit Australia twice and New Zealand once.  As 'DINKS', we had the opportunity to share two memorable Spring Break trips in consecutive years- Bavaria and then the Loire Valley.  After Beth was diagnosed with cancer, we had a trip to Paris and Riga before COVID shutdown further trips.

In 2017, Beth and I purchased Green Briar Ranch, Pagosa Springs, Colorado, USA as a vacation home for our family.  Though Beth was not a skier, she loved the beauty of the San Juan Mountains and was content to sit in front of the fire enjoying the view of Pagosa Peak, while spending time with the people she loved.  We had hoped to have Beth's siblings and their families be able to spend time with Beth there this August.  One of Beth's last requests was that we go through with the visit and we will celebrate her life together this summer in Colorado.

Some of Beth's most fulfilling moments as a Mother came in 2018 and 2019 when she played a key role in helping our two daughters plan their weddings.  The fact that the venues were far from home, in Kentucky and Colorado, made for a challenge that Beth could really get her teeth into.  She flawlessly planned two wonderful events providing guidance to her girls while also letting them call the shots and ensuring both events went off without a hitch, (and on budget). 

Shortly after the second wedding in August 2019, Beth began to experience extreme fatigue.  She initially attributed this to an imbalance in her thyroid medication.  Further bloodwork indicated anemia and tests in October 2019 revealed a Stage IV Colon Cancer diagnosis.  Since November 2019, Beth was cared for by the dedicated professionals at the University of Texas' world-renowned MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.  We traveled every two weeks from Dallas to Houston for chemotherapy.

At the end of 2020, it was determined the cancer was progressing and Beth was enrolled in a clinical trial.  She was very excited to participate in this cutting-edge research project.  Unfortunately, the progression of cancer in the liver eventually precluded further chemotherapy and Beth bravely decided to transition to hospice care at home.  Though Beth only survived another ten days, we were fortunate to be able to get significant people in her life (all three siblings, three nieces, both daughters and their husbands, two childhood BFF's, in-laws, and teacher colleagues) to visit with her while she was still lucid and able to enjoy their visits.

One of my greatest regrets through Beth's cancer journey was that this woman, who would make an amazing grandmother, was being denied that opportunity.  Fortunately, we received some news last month that made Beth very happy- Our daughter Kristina Coggins and her husband Dan Heck are expecting a baby in late October. Beth was able to see an ultrasound image of the baby which filled her with joy.

Sleep well my love, you will never be forgotten and I will always love you.

OBITUARY

Elizabeth Darroch Coggins

November 25, 1958 – April 13, 2021

Stonebriar Funeral Home and Cremation Services

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