Obituary of David M. Coughlan

In loving memory of David Morgan Coughlan May 27, 1954 – January 20, 2017 David was born in Cottage Grove, Oregon. He spent his first 7 years on Forest Service Ranger Stations in Oregon and Washington, lived in many places as a boy, Corvallis and Portland Oregon, Deltona, Florida, Larchmont, New York, and Vancouver, Washington. He lived over 25 years in Lake Oswego, Oregon. David graduated from Evergreen High School, Vancouver, WA with the class of 1972. He also graduated from Portland State University in 1987, with a degree in geography, followed up by a Master’s degree from PSU. He was an honor roll student during his college years. During his marriage to Leslie Rule, they co-produced and published a book called Beautiful America’s Portland. David assisted with the geography and research of the book. Leslie was the gifted author, with descriptions of the city that made the reader feel like they could actually smell the roses she spoke of! The photographer was Craig Tuttle, his photographs were innovative and beautiful! Even though their union ended, they remained good friends. He worked for Wells Fargo, Beard Appraisal Group, Appraisal Management group and in his own business as a professional residential appraiser, a job he really enjoyed! Our brother was a brilliant man, as a child he read the whole set of the encyclopedia, A-Z, and remembered it all, due to his photographic memory. He was an honest and kind person and loved all animals, especially cats. Because of his respect for all animals, he became a vegetarian as a young man. He enjoyed history, geology, astronomy, classic cars and architecture. David fell in love with sailing, he learned the rules of the rivers from his father Barrett and enjoyed sailing on the Willamette and Columbia rivers. He was a big sports fan, rooting for the Trailblazers, Seahawks and the Mariners. He had a great sense of humor, and was a good person to ask for advice. We will miss him very much! He was preceded in death by his parents, Barrett and Elizabeth Coughlan. David is survived by his sisters, Cathleen Murphy and her husband Michael, Laurie Batterson and her husband Jeff Logan, his brother Barrett Coughlan and his wife Marilyn, nephews, Jason and Nathan Webster, Ryan Batterson and Michael Harmon, nieces, Shannon Stewart and Alisha Enochs. He is survived by his Aunt Pat Guadalongna, who took him in when he was a teenager and he had a special spot in his heart for her.David had many adventures and memories with his step brothers and stepsisters, The Turpins, William, Burwood, Laura, Janet, Connie and Joseph. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Furry Friends Cat Rescue, a nonprofit, no kill cat shelter. Thank you. Their phone number is 360 993-1097. A celebration of life will be held at 5:00 PM. On February 11, 2017. The Slocum House at Esther Short Park, 605 Esther Street, Vancouver, Washington 98660