Thomas F. Coates

Goodbye Darling, I will forever miss your funniness, your kind laugh, and cherish-able memories you gave us. You are my teacher, love and mentor. You will be missed, Rest in Peace.

Tom,

We miss you very dearly. Thank you so much for always bringing us happiness and cheer to every family gathering. Your laughter was sure to bring a smile to everyone’s faces. Thank you for all your kind lessons and for taking care of the family. Rest In Peace.

We are shocked and unbelievably saddened by the premature passing of Thomas Coates.
The world lost a brilliant, humorous and kind man. You made Katie, our sister, incredibly happy. Please know that you are remembered in our hearts and prayers.

Amid our grief, Tom’s laughter reminds me of the following passage from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry‘s The Little Prince:

“And at night you will look up at the stars. They will all be your friends.

All men have stars, but they are not the same things for different people. For some, who are travelers, the stars are guides. For others they are no more than little lights in the sky. For others, who are scholars, they are problems. For businessman they were wealth. But all these stars are silent.
You — you alone — will have the stars as no one else has them —

In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars are laughing, when you look at the sky at night…

You — only you — will have stars that can laugh.”

Baruch dayan ha’emet.

Dear, Tom
Thank you for sending me messages and informing of information that I never knew about. You were always thoughtful of the family thinking ways to help the family when ever possible. Thank you for the memories that you have created.

Rest In Peace Tom.

Dear Tom,
Thank you for the texts of information and informing things I have never knew of before. You were always really funny during family gathering, and really caring about the family. You thought of the family and always tried to find ways to solve the situation. Thank you for creating these precious memories that will never be forgotten.

Rest In Peace Tom.

Dear Tom,
Thank you for the texts of information and informing things I have never knew of before. You were always really funny during family gathering, and really caring about the family. You thought of the family and always tried to find ways to solve the situation. Thank you for creating these precious memories that will never be forgotten.

Rest In Peace Tom.

I was very sorry to hear about Tom’s passing.
I worked with Tom a short time, but enjoyed his energy and enthusiasm for everything he did.
He struck me a bit like the brilliant professor that could not contain all of his energy and genius.
He made an impact on many people during his short tenure at Georgia-Pacific.
We are very sorry for your loss, Tom and his family are in our thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.

I will miss Tom, one of my best friends. We had a lot of great conversations and times as friends over the past two decades and a half.
Running as the Seattle ‘Brat Pack’ in Belltown.
Eating way more sushi at Shiro’s than people thought was humanly possible.
Enjoying burgers at Mama’s after a late night at Tini Bigs.
Regaining my hearing (still) after a Megadeath concert at the Paramount.
Honored by his presence at my wedding. He always said Carol was one in million.
Eating sushi in London at Nobu – with Tom, there was always eating sushi!
Enjoying caviar in NYC at Caviar Russe and sushi at Sushi Zen.
Working many late hours on side gigs for StrategyCrew.
Letting him convince me to work some consulting gigs in Atlanta – was only supposed to be 3 months!
Enjoying vodka martinis (shaken not stirred, of course, Mr. Bond) at Annie’s Thai.
Testing the patience of the building residents as we cranked up his Mesa Boogie.
Enjoying Seven-layer Chocolate cake at The Palm.
Sushi, of course, at Rusan’s always discussing politics and tech.
Lots and lots of spirited conversations and text messages over the years about politics, relationships, tech and religion.

Tom you will be missed. May God comfort your friends and family. Our prayers are with them.

Tom, TC, Coat, you were one of my best friends and I’m going to miss you dearly. Thank you for your friendship, mentoring, and things you taught me professionally and personally. I will miss talking about and playing guitars, eating sushi, playing golf, and discussing all things tech.

Rest in Peace brother! I hope you are kicking back with a Martini (shaken not stirred), wearing your Omega Seamaster, and making paper roses for everyone in heaven.

My prayers to Tom and his family.

You gave no one a last farewell, nor ever said good-bye; You were gone before we all knew it, and only God knows why.
In life, you had dear friends, in death friends love you still.
Blue was your favorite color, guitars were your favorite toys. Your passion for sushi was hotter than wasabi, your laugh was funnier than Kung Fu Hustle! You know what I am talking about.
Words cannot describe our stories. You are very special in our memories. You went to heaven too soon, rest in peace Viking. God Bless.

My dear friend Tom you’re gone. I found a funny note from him while we were moving this month.
I tried to find him on social media and call his old number.
My heart skipped a beat when I saw he passed three years ago.
There’s so much I remember I’ll never forget.
His laughter, music, brilliant mind, compassion, generosity, love for food and travel.
If anyone reads this please reach out to me and let me know what took my dear friend out of this world.
You were the GOAT!!! RIP Tom

678-480-9969