Edwin L. Coffman

Edwin Lawrence Coffman was born in Paris, Arkansas on October 10, 1932. His family moved to Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1937 and attended school in Fort Smith until he graduated from high school in 1950. Edwin (Eddie and Pop) was an all- state tight end in High School.

Eddie attended Hendrix College and played college football prior to attending Medical School at the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. Eddie married Ladonna June Hale on June 15, 1957 in Clinton, Arkansas. He and his new bride lived in Tulsa Oklahoma for one year during Eddie’s internship and LaDonna worked as an RN at Hillcrest Medical Center. Eddie then served 2 years in the United States Air Force as a flight surgeon, achieving the rank of Captain.

Eddie and LaDonna moved to Durham, North Carolina after the Air Force in 1960, for Eddie to complete his Anesthesiology residency at Duke university. He later moved back to Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1962 to practice Anesthesiology.

Most of his working years were at Sparks Regional Medical Center. Eddie and Ladonna had three children, Phillip, David and John. Eddie’s hobbies included flying his Cessna 182, visiting with people all over the world on his Ham radio and assisting with coaching baseball and football when his boys were young. Eddie loved to take his kids and grandkids water skiing and tubing at the lake. Eddie enjoyed being a member of the Nifty Fifty group and was a member of Goddard United Methodist Church.

Surviving are his son Phillip, his wife Jane and daughter Kristen. David and Beth Coffman, their son Matthew, his wife Andrea and their daughter Sage, and their daughter Carol and her husband Michael Harris. Dr. John Coffman and Kim Cluck, and John’s daughters Erin and Hannah Coffman.