Tristram Deforest Coffin died on January 18, 2024 in Lakewood, Colorado from congestive heart failure. Tristram Deforest Coffin died on January 18, 2024 in Lakewood, Colorado from congestive heart failure.
He is survived by his wife of 16 years, Jennifer Johnson Coffin of Lakewood, his daughter Molly Coffin and her husband Philip Patrick of Seattle, his stepsons Ashley and Justin, his sons Mark and Forest, and his twin brother Howard. Tris was predeceased by his son Alexander, who died from cancer in 1986, his elder sister Cella, and his younger twin brothers Fred and Will.
Tris was born in 1939 in Birmingham, Michigan to Dean Fiske Coffin and Winifred Deforest Coffin. After graduating from Western Reserve
Academy in Ohio, he attended Brown University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in classics in 1962. He delighted in reminiscing about the shenanigans he and his four siblings took part in as kids – mischief that turned out to be a precursor to the more advanced theatrics he and his Sigma Chi fraternity brothers engaged in during their years at Brown. Allegedly, Tris played the accordion at parties in those days with enough skill, regularity, and enthusiasm that he never had to pay for his own beer. He remained friends with several of his fraternity brothers throughout his life and continued to play the accordion well into his seventies.
When he wasn't entertaining others or working as a management consultant, Tris loved to spend his free time in nature. His favorite outdoor activities included downhill skiing, hiking, camping, and canoeing. In his later years, he liked going for drives in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, playing Scrabble with Jennifer, and attending Sunday services at the Mile Hi Church in Lakewood. He remained actively involved with the Colorado chapter of the Institute of Management Consultants, where he served as a member of the board of directors.
He was an eternal optimist, a romanticist, and generous to a fault. Tris will be remembered for his charm and his warmth.
 Tristram and Molly |
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