David Ronald Coddington

Anonymous

847w ago

As I hope you know, the Coddington family holds a special place in my father's heart, which allowed me to be blessed by you all as well. I am sorry to be belated in conveying my thoughts, but I just learned of your loss today. One of the best lessons I learned from my own dad is that lifetime friends are a precious treasure, no matter how infrequently you get the chance to get together. Laurie, I've spent my entire adult life away from Lakewood other than the brief chances I get to visit, but I still consider it my home. As we celebrate our 50th birthdays (ouch!), I'm glad we can share the best and worst that life has to offer with our friends. It makes me smile when I remember the twinkle in your grandmother's eyes on our Sunday visits as a little boy, or when I think of reconnecting with you in our teen years and once again during one of my brief visits home. I am sorry for the loss you have all experienced, but grateful to have known your dad. I'll be praying for and thinking of you as you adjust to this new phase of life without one of your life's mainstays. Please look us up if you ever make it up to Alaska.
In Him,
Tom Lawrence, Jr.##imported-begin##Tom Lawrence, Jr.##imported-end##

Anonymous

847w ago

Freda, Laurie, & David
Dave was a wonderful friend to us and will be sorely missed. He was a guiding light in our early married years and to the community when owned his store in Lakewood. Bill and David Sr. rode their motorcyles through Lakecity causing lots of noise is what Bill tells me. They were young and before you or I knew them. Thank you for the updates on Dave and how we will miss him. God Bless you as you go through these trying times...Please accept our condolences. Bill & Billie Holloway-Cook##imported-begin##Bill & Billie Holloway-Cook##imported-end##

Anonymous

848w ago

Dear Freda, Laurie, and Davie,

My sister Joan and I have many happy remembrances of our cousin Dave that we want to share with you. They are largely of the halcyon days of our childhood, when the woods around Fort Lewis and American Lake were full of wildflowers, and the open spaces bloomed with Scotch broom that had been introduced in the days of the sailing ships by a Scottish sea captain who missed his homeland

David and Buddy, his younger brother, were our favorite cousins. We were closer in age and proximity, and were able to share school holidays together, bushwhacking through the broom, and following secret paths in the woods near Carp Lake and Grandpa CoddingtonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s home. Later on, in the forties, we four rode our bikes even further afield. It was all very adventurous and exciting. We girls, being older, led the way in our joint explorations and occasional mischief-making, once showing the boys how to use straws to blow the wrappers off in projectile-like fashion. The local drugstore soda fountainÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s counter was horseshoe-shaped and other customers were seated opposite us and our downed milkshakes. We were ready to blow and run, and our hearts were pounding. Off came the wrappers, whizzing away in different directions. Only DavidÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s hit the mark, landing in front of a lady seated on the far side of the counter. We were all convulsed in laughter as we scattered. Dear David, he was our hero.

In the late fifties, Dave proudly brought his new, English bride to meet me, my husband, Dick, and our two little boys in El Cerrito, California. I was so very touched that he and Freda had gone to the trouble of looking us up. It was a long time since I had seen any of my relatives from Tacoma, so DaveÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s surprise visit was extra-special. It was such a treat, too, to be able to welcome Freda, in person, to our family.

Many years later, in the eighties, when I lived on the east coast, I made several trips to Tacoma to see my mother, Hallie. Each visit, I found Dave lovingly looking after the older family members, especially his mother, our beloved Aunt Jo, whom Joan, our mother, and I adored. He was the rock foundation of the Coddington family in those years. For his many kindnesses to my mother, I am forever grateful.

With heartfelt sympathy and love,

Alice Hammer Michener##imported-begin##Alice Hammer Michener##imported-end##

Anonymous

848w ago

Dear Laurie and family, I am sincerely sorry about your Dad, we have talked and have this in common and I am here for you anytime, I know you have strength and that will guide you, I know he is in a much better peaceful place for sure, Love Cheryl##imported-begin##Cheryl Leonard##imported-end##

Anonymous

848w ago

I'm saddened to hear of David's passing. Years ago my mother told me that David's mom and mine were at the hospital at the same time of his and my birth. I was born on February 4, 1934, was he also? My thoughts and prayers are with you at this time of sorrow. May he rest in peace.##imported-begin##Alice Schibig##imported-end##

Anonymous

849w ago

Dear Freda, Laurie, and Davie,

My sister Joan and I have many happy remembrances of our cousin Dave that we want to share with you. They are largely of the halcyon days of our childhood, when the woods around Fort Lewis and American Lake were full of wildflowers, and the open spaces bloomed with Scotch broom that had been introduced in the days of the sailing ships by a Scottish sea captain who missed his homeland

David and Buddy, his younger brother, were our favorite cousins. We were closer in age and proximity, and were able to share school holidays together, bushwhacking through the broom, and following secret paths in the woods near Carp Lake and Grandpa CoddingtonÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s home. Later on, in the forties, we four rode our bikes even further afield. It was all very adventurous and exciting. We girls, being older, led the way in our joint explorations and occasional mischief-making, once showing the boys how to use straws to blow the wrappers off in projectile-like fashion. The local drugstore soda fountainÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s counter was horseshoe-shaped and other customers were seated opposite us and our downed milkshakes. We were ready to blow and run, and our hearts were pounding. Off came the wrappers, whizzing away in different directions. Only DavidÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s hit the mark, landing in front of a lady seated on the far side of the counter. We were all convulsed in laughter as we scattered. Dear David, he was our hero.

In the late fifties, Dave proudly brought his new, English bride to meet me, my husband, Dick, and our two little boys in El Cerrito, California. I was so very touched that he and Freda had gone to the trouble of looking us up. It was a long time since I had seen any of my relatives from Tacoma, so DaveÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s surprise visit was extra-special. It was such a treat, too, to be able to welcome Freda, in person, to our family.

Many years later, in the eighties, when I lived on the east coast, I made several trips to Tacoma to see my mother, Hallie. Each visit, I found Dave lovingly looking after the older family members, especially his mother, our beloved Aunt Jo, whom Joan, our mother, and I adored. He was the rock foundation of the Coddington family in those years. For his many kindnesses to my mother, I am forever grateful.

With heartfelt sympathy and love,

Alice Hammer Michener##imported-begin##Alice H.Michener##imported-end##

Anonymous

849w ago

We are so sad to hear of your loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with you, Carolyne Hudson and family.##imported-begin##Carolyne Hudson##imported-end##

Anonymous

849w ago

Dear Freda, Laurie and David,
Who could help smiling when they think of Dave?! My sister Alice and I used to spend vacation time at Grandpa Charles Coddington's home-
stead in South Tacoma and often visited the family down the road:
precious, loving AuntJo, Uncle Bill, Dave, and Bud. Happy childhood memories. We four youngsters ventured near and far on our bikes,
and was it Dave who showed us how to sneak into the Army Dump at Fort
Lewis through the woods? WW2 was underway,so we picked up canteens,
assorted military memorabilia and thought ourselves very brave and smart to evade the soldier on guard at the dump. Did we ever get in trouble back home showing off our finds, empty shell casings, and unfortunately one live unexploded round. Off to the woodshed!

You should have seen Dave when he was in grade school. He had, without doubt, the most luxuriant black eyelashes I've ever seen!
The kids at school must have razzed him unmercifully, for on one visit
Dave had taken his mother's cuticle scissors and cut them all off! So
there!
It's been 60 some years since then, and many miles away for most of them. Our mother , Hallie, decided to spend her last years near the old home, and her brothers Tom and Jess who lived there. By phone and
letter she would tell us of Dave's loving concern for his older relatives, including them in family celebrations. I have always been grateful to you all for the kindness you showed her. God bless you, and may our merciful Father in heaven embrace our long-suffering Dave in His eternal peace and joy...in the loving company of dear ones gone before.
I'll remember you in prayers for the healing of your grief in loss,
and always, always remember Dave with a smile.
Love, Joan##imported-begin##joan jimenez##imported-end##

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