Thomas Donald Coffman, of Harrison, Arkansas, and formerly of Houma, Louisiana, peacefully passed away with his family by his side on Thursday, April 30, 2026, at North Arkansas Regional Medical Center. He was 75.

Donald, as he was known, was born in Chicago, IL, on June 7, 1950. The son of Louis Casvil Coffman and Ruth Lenore (Rembert), Donald grew up in Houma, Louisiana, and attended Terrebonne High School, where he met the love of his life, Darlene Falterman. They were married shortly after graduation, beginning their 55 years together. Donald stayed unwavering in his commitment to his vows of for better or worse, in sickness and health, in good times and bad, until death do us part. To him, she was Monk, and to her, he was Snoogybear.

As a provider, he followed in his father’s footsteps by going to work in the oilfield. Donald spent 16 years working for Halliburton Services. He held multiple positions with the company until the oilfield crashed back in the mid 80’s. He decided to attend Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, Louisiana. He valued education, excelled in Mathematics, and enjoyed fellowship with other students by playing cards in the union hall. His time at college was cut short due to health reasons, which caused him to become disabled. He redirected his focus to volunteering himself in the community and schools. He had a burning desire to ensure kids had opportunities to feel included in something. This led him to become a coach in local youth sports and recreation programs. Although he was a Terrebonne High School Tiger at heart, when presented with the opportunity, he became a volunteer at H.L. Bourgeois High School, his children’s alma mater. He served as the High School's Booster Club President and volunteered to be the Head Golf Coach when the program lost its funding. He was instrumental in the implementation of the school’s 504 program, which helped students with learning disabilities. He worked the ticket booth for games, fundraising events like Bingo, and concessions at all after-school programs. He continued this work until his wife’s retirement, when the couple decided to relocate to Harrison, AR.

Donald was steadfast in his faith in God and had a lot of love for life. He was a member of the Krewe of Hercules Mardi Club for several years, along with his sons and son-in-law. He loved joking and picking with people. He especially loved picking with his children, their spouses, and his grandchildren. He was always up for getting a McDonald’s hamburger, making sure to specify to the one taking his order that he needed a freshly prepared order of fries by loudly saying a “HOT” fry when ordering. He had a generous heart; his generosity was bigger than he was. He took great joy in his children, always encouraging them to be outgoing by participating in activities, clubs, and sports. He absolutely adored his grandchildren, to whom he was affectionately known as “Pon.” He always made sure they had a “little mad money”, loved hearing about their current activities, and encouraged them to do their best always. He loved coloring, word search puzzles, yelling at his Google to play all kinds of music, and tell him about the weather. He loved sitting on the back porch, on what we called the swing of knowledge. He would yell out, “it’s 3 o’clock, time for coffee,” while looking over his Ponderosa. From there, he would contemplate solutions to the world’s problems, send out funny memes, and provide updates on the current Harrison weather conditions to friends and family. He loved watching old westerns, especially The Lone Ranger. He had sayings like, " That’s good enough to knock around in, son pull your pants up and get a handkerchief, This is a dictatorship not a democracy - I am El Dictator you do as I say and not as I do, and when he was lecturing you - he’d say you can write it down in your little black book and put it in the bank.”

To summarize, Thomas Donald Coffman, there is a poem entitled The Dash, the dash is the punctuation between one’s birth and death dates. It represents one’s life; it encourages us to live with purpose, shifting away from focus on material possessions. It’s a call to action - being less quick to anger, showing appreciation, respecting others, and lastly reflecting on one’s mortality, as life is short and unpredictable. During the many condolences received, it was said, if you measure the greatness of a man based off the people who loved him and who he raised, then Donald must have been one great man. - Donald lived his dash.

Donald is predeceased by his parents, a brother, and a sister. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Darlene (Falterman) Coffman; his three children, Chad (Holly) Coffman, Allison (Bruce) Boudreaux, and Brian (Tracy) Coffman; a niece, who is like a daughter, Apryl (Jeffery) Nanney; his grandchildren: Tiffany Coffman, Jennifer (Jason) Johnson, Shelby (Caleb) Mathis, Brian Michael (Noura) Coffman, Hunter Coffman, Kaitlyn Coffman, and Parker Boudreaux; his great-grandchildren: Adam Coffman, Mavis Johnson, and Kenan Coffman; a sister Joyce (Skip) Pryby, and his nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be at 9:30 AM followed by a Rosary at 10:30 AM with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 AM all on Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at Mary Mother of God Catholic Church. The celebrant will be Father Ben Riley. Burial will follow at Mary Mother of God Catholic Cemetery with Donald's family serving as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers include Paul Bourg, Jerry Filce, Gerald Dishman, Mike Arp, and Paul Tullos.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to the Mary Mother of God Catholic Cemetery Fund, 1614 Maplewood Road, Harrison, AR 72601 or to a charity of your choice.