Dr. James Coleman

Dr. James Coleman, of Columbia, died July 15, 2008, of kidney failure, at Laurel Regional Hospital in Laurel. He was 78.

Born Dec. 21, 1929, in Birmingham, Ala., to Jacob Coleman and Alice Coleman Cawood, he graduated from Benham High School in Benham, Ky., in 1947.

He graduated from Knoxville College in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry. He then earned a Master of Science degree in pharmacy from Ohio State University in 1956, a Master of Science degree in hospital administration in 1970 from Wayne State University and a Doctor of Science in public health in 1991 from Johns Hopkins University.

In 1951, he was drafted in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and was based in Fort Ord, Calif., where he was a supply clerk. He was discharged in 1960.

He married Alice Roberts in 1967.

Dr. Coleman worked as a professor of pharmacy for Howard University for 22 years. He retired in 1990.

Family members recall that he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Columbia Alumni.

He is survived by his wife, Alice Coleman, of Columbia; three sons and a daughter-in-law, Marc and Chonda Coleman, of Houston, Jeffrey Coleman, of Columbia, and Alex Coleman, of Columbia; and a grandson, Marc Coleman Jr., of Houston.

Funeral services were held July 22, 2008, at St. John United Methodist Presbyterian Church in Columbia. The Rev. R. Whitfield Bass presided.

Interment followed at the Maryland National Cemetery, in Laurel.

user comments (0)