Jerry Coffel, of Union City, CA, passed away peacefully at the Masonic Home of California on September 23, 2023, at the age of 84. He was born on October 21, 1938, in Du Quoin, IL to Edward E. Coffel and Julia Aline Coffel (nee Miller). He grew up in Du Quoin and graduated from Du Quoin Township High School in 1956. Jerry spent his first two years of college at the University of Illinois before transferring to Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, where he received a bachelor's degree in 1960. After graduation, Jerry worked for the Department of Housing and Urban Development in Gainesville, FL, Atlanta, GA, and Hartford, CT, helping cities secure land from the federal government for urban projects, including parks and zoos, throughout the Southern and Eastern United States. He also worked at the city planning level in Connecticut and Illinois. Jerry moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in the early 1970s where he worked for the City of Oakland in the Planning and Building Department. Eventually transitioning into real estate, Jerry was a mortgage broker, and a credit counselor, and lived in Castro Valley, CA, until his retirement when he moved to Antioch, CA. Jerry was a 3rd-degree Mason, active in the Live Oak Masonic Lodge #61 in Oakland, CA after his arrival to California until he could no longer attend meetings in person. Jerry was also active in the Self-Realization Fellowship Church of Walnut Creek, CA, and the Clayton Presbyterian Church in Clayton, CA.
Jerry was preceded in death by his husband Joe Garcia, his parents Ed and Aline Coffel, his brother Edward Eugene (Eddie Gene) Coffel, and his cousins Jim (Prudy) Delap and John Delap, both originally from Carbondale who were bonus brothers to Jerry and Eddie Gene while growing up. Jerry will be missed by his sister-in-law Mary Coffel McCollum (Russell) of Du Quoin, and cousins Jeannine Harriss Cook of St. Louis, MO, Katherine Harriss Fadum (Peter) of Oakley, CA, Clayton Harriss (Judy) and Tom Harriss (Vicki), all of Tuscola, IL, Ed Harriss (Bonnie) of Riverside, CA, Kay Livingston of Bradenton, FL and many loving friends here in the San Francisco Bay Area. The family would like to thank the healthcare professionals and caregivers at Kaiser Permanente, The Masonic Home assisted living facility, Gentiva Hospice, and Home Instead in Fremont and Union City, CA for taking such good care of Jerry since he moved to Union City in 2022.
Services and Interment will be private; Jerry will be laid to rest at Sunset Memorial Park in Du Quoin. Lastly, Jerry would have a hearty laugh if you remembered him by gathering with your loved ones to enjoy a traditional Southern Illinois Sunday family dinner of fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, corn, green beans, and dumplings. And don't forget the peach cobbler!
Searby Funeral Home in Du Quoin is in charge of local arrangements.