Thomas Ripley Coates ’64

Tom Coates died unexpectedly June 11, 2009, at his home in Kirksville, Mo. He was 67.

Raised in Cincinnati, Tom attended Walnut Hills High School and followed his father, James O. Coates ’35, to Princeton. As an undergraduate, he majored in Latin American literature in the Special Program of European Civilization, was active in chess and ham radio, and was a member of Court Club. He went on to earn a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin and taught French, Spanish, and German at the University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, and Monmouth College before ultimately settling at Truman State University in Missouri, from which he retired “with honor and distinction” in 2007.

Tom is survived by his mother, Clare H. Coates; a brother, James Coates; a sister, Virginia Coates Barrett; and a daughter, Victoria Yyu Coates. The class extends its sympathy to his family.