Thomas Coan

Thomas Coan, 87, passed away peacefully on November 12, 2016 surrounded by his family. Tom was a kind and gentle man with a wonderful sense of humor and a bit of mischief in his eyes.

Tom was born in Dallas, Texas on February 9, 1929 but spent most of his early years in Salt Lake City, Utah. His father was in the Mining Equipment business and Tom developed his passion for the equipment business there. For a time, his family owned and occupied the Deveraux Mansion in Salt Lake City, which is now an historic landmark.

Tom was a Sergeant First Class in the Army and felt very fortunate to be able to serve his country in Korea, where he earned the bronze star for meritorious service. He returned from the war in 1951 and married his high school sweetheart, Sally Tipton. On a wing and a prayer, Tom & Sally left their home in Salt Lake and moved to California where Tom started Coan Equipment Company, eventually becoming the Top Volume Dealer in North America in 1966 selling Case Tractors. He was a dynamic businessman and was truly ahead of his time. Fair, honest and respected, Tom went on to own and manage Construction Equipment related businesses for the next 30 years.

Tom & Sally moved to Napa in 1991 after they lost their home in the devastating Oakland Hills Fire. They celebrated 50 years of marriage before Sally’s death in 2002. Tom then met and married Helen Lawrence and had 13 wonderful years together traveling and both enjoying their “second chapters”. Because of health issues, he had recently moved to Phoenix, Arizona to be cared for by his daughter.

Tom is survived by his wife, Helen Coan, his daughter

Michele Workman (Gary), Sons, Mike Coan (Linda) and Tim Coan (Christy), step-children Merilyn Rodgers (Darwin) and Larry Lawrence (Debbie). He is also survived by numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren and will be dearly missed by all.

The family would like to thank the many caregivers who have helped Tom over the past few years, especially Irene Kingsford and Hospice of the Valley.

A celebration of Tom’s life will be held at Tulocay Chapel, 411 Coombsville Road, Napa, CA on Saturday, December 3, 2016 at 11 am with a reception following.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Tom’s name to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St. Phoenix AZ 85014.

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