| Date of Birth | July 13, 1925 |
| Passed Away | September 15, 2013 |
| Place of Residence | Canaseraga |
| Home State | NY |
| Service Date | September 23, 2013 |
| Service Time | 11:30 a.m. |
| Service Location | Bath V.A. Center Chapel |
| Interment Location | Bath National Cemetery. |
CANASERAGA-Dennison Robert “Denny” Coates, 88, of 40 River St., passed away Sunday morning (Sept. 15, 2013) at the Buffalo Veterans Administration Medical Center, after a long illness.
Born in Greenwood on July 13, 1925 he was a son of the late Andrew and Bernadine Denison Coates. On Feb. 14, 2001 he was married in Canaseraga to the former Brenda Jean Smith, who survives.
A veteran of World War II, Denny proudly served his country with the United States Marine Corps and was involved with the invasion of Iwo Jima.
He was formerly employed by Hornell Industries, the Glenwood Dairies, the Hornell Fire Department, the New York State Police and for many years owned and operated Coates Auto Service on Main St. in Hornell
Denny enjoyed fishing and will be remembered most of all for always having a “good joke.” In his own words, “I read my name in the paper today, and they were right, here I am on one last trip.”
Besides his parents he was predeceased by his son, Michael Frederick Coates; his sister, Geraldine; and his two brothers, Andrew Coates, who was killed in the Battle of the Bulge in 1944 and Burdette Coates.
His loving family includes his wife of 12 years, Brenda; his six sons, Donald (Pamela) Coates of Olcott; Richard (Donna) Coates of North Syracuse, John (Debbie) Coates of Hornell, Dennis (Mary) Coates of New Jersey, Andrew Coates of Hornell and James Coates of North Carolina; his three daughters, Patricia (Robert) Carlin of Hornell, Penny Coates of Massachusetts and Angela (Scott) Hallett of Virginia; also numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews; and last, but not least, his two special dogs, Sophie and Sadie.
Calling hours are from 4-7 p.m. Thursday (Sept. 19) at the Bishop & Johnson Funeral Home, Inc., 285 Main St., Hornell. A funeral service will be held at 11:30 a.m. Monday (Sept. 23) at the Bath V.A. Center Chapel, with Lay Pastor Bill Ellis of the First Presbyterian Church of Ossian officiating. Committal services and interment, with military honors, will follow at Bath National Cemetery.
The American Flag and the United State Marine Corps flag will proudly fly at the Bishop & Johnson Funeral Home, Inc. in recognitions of Denny’s military service during World War II.
In lieu of flowers, it was Denny’s request that those wishing may contribute in his memory to the Disabled American Veterans (www.DAV.org), P.O. Box 14301, Cincinnati, OH 45290-0301. Envelopes for memorial contributions will be available at the funeral home.
To Denny’s Wife,Brenda, his children, (their spouses), grandchildren and all those who loved him: He truly was “one in a million”!! If you were lucky enough to be a friend of Denny’s, you had a true friend for life!! What a wonderful gift of humor he had! and shared it with all of us! We will truly miss that! May you find comfort during this difficult time! You are in our thoughts and prayers. Sincerely, Linda and Bill McMordie
Mrs. Coates,
Peg and I wanted to let you know how sorry we are for the loss of Mr. Coates. He was lucky to have you in his life and I know you gave each other much joy. Please extend our sympathies to the rest of the family.
Always Deb
so sorry for your loss. Prayers and sympathy to you all, during this time.
Denny was a wonderful man. He helped us out when we needed a friend. Rest in Peace Denny.