Eighth Generation

8920. Robert Lewis Coffey was born on 27 December 1926 in Chattanooga, Hamilton Co., TN. Robert died on 23 February 2010 at the age of 83 in Powder Springs, Cobb Co., GA and was buried at Cheatham Hill Memorial Park in Marietta, Cobb Co., GA on 26 February 2010.²⁷³³⁸

Obituary, Chattanooga Times Free Press, Chattanooga, TN, Thu., Feb. 25, 2010

Powder Springs, GA - Robert Lewis Coffey, 83, passed away Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010.

He was born in Chattanooga in 1926, the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Coffey Sr. He grew up in Chattanooga, attended Baylor Military Academy, and then joined the U.S. Navy in 1944 at the age of 17. During WW II he participated in the Battle of Okinawa as a part of the crew of the USS LST 841.

After the war he studied business at the University of Chattanooga and then electronic engineering at Valparaiso Technical Institute, eventually joining Lockheed Georgia Co. where he worked for 35 years.

In 1948 he married Frances Sue Davidson, of Red Bank, Tenn., and then raised his family in Georgia. They were married for 63 years.

Over the years his interests included photography, short wave radio, woodworking, electronics and more. He was well known for his talent of being able to repair almost anything! He was a loving husband and father who was happiest when with his family and working in his workshop.

He was a member of Faith Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.

He is survived by his wife, Frances Sue; daughters, Dorothy Sue and Martha Jean; and sons, Edward Parker and Robert Lynn. Additional survivors are a sister, Mary Katherine Rawlings and a brother, the Rev. Jon Coffey, along with eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

The family will receive visitors at West Cobb Funeral Home from 9:30-10:30 a.m. on Friday.

Donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association on behalf of Robert Coffey. Alzheimer Association, 1925 Century Blvd NE, Suite 10, Atlanta, GA 30345.

A graveside service will be Friday at 11 a.m. at Cheatham Hill Memorial Park, Marietta.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. at Faith Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Austell.

Robert Lewis Coffey and Frances Sue Davidson were married on 18 June 1948 in Hamilton Co., TN.²⁷³³⁹ Frances Sue Davidson, daughter of William Clinton Davidson and Elsie Olean, was born on 23 December 1926 in Tennessee. Frances died in Smyrna, Cobb Co., GA on 10 January 2017 and was buried at Cheatham Hill Memorial Park in Marietta, Cobb Co., GA in January 2017 .²⁷³⁴⁰

Frances Sue Coffey, 90, of Smyrna Georgia passed away in the early hours of Tuesday January 10, 2017. She was preceded in death by her parents William Clinton and Elsie Olean Davidson and her husband of 63 years Robert Lewis Coffey. Born on December 23, 1926 she spent her early years in Hixson, Tennessee. Upon the death of her mother in June 1937, she and her older sister Dorothy were raised by their maternal Uncle and Aunt, Joe and Carrie Smith in Red Bank.

After graduating from Red Bank High School she attended the University of Chattanooga where she received a Bachelor’s Degree in music. It was during this period that in an effort to defray the cost of her education she took a job with the Government in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. It wasn’t until after the war that she became aware that her contribution to the war effort was working on the Manhattan Project. It was also around this time that she met another student at UC who would shortly become her husband. She and Robert Coffey were married on July 23, 1948.

After several moves throughout the Southeast, they settled in Marietta, Georgia to raise a family. Her religious convictions were formed at a very young age and very well known. All of her children were raised in church with the entire family attending on weekly basis. Her involvement with the church was not only in attending services, but also singing in the choir, teaching Sunday school, playing the piano when asked, and teaching Kindergarten during the week. When the First Presbyterian Church of Marietta joined the Presbyterian Church USA, she and Bob, along with a handful of others, left and founded Faith ARP Church in Austell Ga. In this new church she continued her involvement with the ministry. 

Robert Lewis Coffey and Frances Sue Davidson had the following children: