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WESTPORT, Conn. – Henry Wakeman Coley III, formerly of Westport, died Dec. 4 at the Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington, Vt. He was 86.
Born Feb. 7, 1926, in Norwalk, he was the son of Lucy Langzettel and Henry W. Coley Jr. Raised in Westport, he graduated from Staples High School in 1944 and then enlisted in the U.S. Air Force.
After his service, Coley received a bachelor’s degree from Johnson State College and master’s degrees from Union College and Michigan State College. He married Janice Vaughn in 1955. She died in 1969. In 1974, he married Thelma Jolivette.
Coley worked as a teacher and coached a variety of sports in Vermont for many years. A Red Cross swimming instructor for many years, he was a lifetime member of the Arlington Lions Club.
He is survived by his wife, Thelma, of Sunderland, Vt.; a son, John (Julie) Coley, of Jackson, N.Y.; a daughter, Ann (Doug Reed) Pickrell, of Chesterfield, Mass.; two half-brothers, William Coley, of Orange, Conn., and Gary Starbuck, of Eagar, Ariz.; and two granddaughters. He was predeceased by a daughter, Jill Coley, in 1987; a brother, Charles; and a sister, Margaret.
There will be a memorial service at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Federated Church of East Arlington in Vermont. Hanson-Walbridge & Shea Funeral Home is handling the arrangements.
Memorial donations may be made to Federated Church of East Arlington or Arlington Lions Club.
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