| Russell Coffey | |
 Russell in his centenarian years | |
| Birth: | 1 September 1898 Tiro, Ohio, USA |
| Death: | 20 December 2007 Baltimore, Ohio, USA |
| Age: | 109 years, 110 days |
| Country: |  USA
|
| Centenarian | |
Dr. James Russell Coffey Ed.D. (1 September 1898 – 20 December 2007) was an American centenarian who was one of the last three American veterans of the First World War. He was the oldest living man in Ohio at the time of his death. He is the 6th oldest man from Ohio ever.
Biography[]
Born in Tiro, Ohio, USA, Russell Coffey enlisted in the United States Army in October 1918, about a month before the armistice was signed. He was a student at The College of Wooster, living in Creston and taking a streetcar to Akron, where he worked in a rubber factory to pay his tuition. Two older brothers already were serving overseas, and he never shipped out. Russell was honorably discharged that same December.
Coffey met his future wife, Bernice, in Creston. She lived one street away, and they courted from about the time of his Army discharge until their marriage in 1922. Their only child, Betty Jo, was born in 1923 and died in September 2007. At 84, she was his only immediate relative still living.
Coffey finished his bachelor's and master's degrees at Ohio State University. He also received his doctorate in education at New York University.
From 1948 to 1969, Coffey served as a faculty member at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He was also initiated into the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity in 1964 by the Delta Beta Chapter at Bowling Green State University.
In June 2005, Coffey visited the Buckeye Boys State program at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
On 7 June 2006, he became the oldest living man in Ohio after the death of 109 year old Herman Phillips of Canton.
By late March 2007, Coffey was one of the last three known surviving American-born World War I veterans, as well as the oldest of them. He was also the oldest living brother of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity.
Russell Coffey died in a nursing facility in North Baltimore, Ohio, USA on 20 December 2007 at the age of 109 years, 110 days.
References[]
- J. Russell Coffey, WWI vet, dead at 109 UPI, 21 December 2007