Jack B. Coulter

  General Notes:

Obituary Published in the Roanoke Times from 9/15/2007 - 9/17/2007:
Jack B. Coulter, 83, passed away on Thursday, September 13, 2007, following valiant efforts to recover from complications during back surgery. Judge Coulter grew up in Roanoke and served his community with distinction. A 1941 graduate of Jefferson High School, he attended Washington & Lee University until the outbreak of World War II, when he entered and graduated from the United States Naval Academy. He completed tours of duty in the South Pacific Theater as an Ensign, aboard the heavy cruisers USS Vicksburg and Manchester during WWII. After the war, he participated in Bikini atomic bomb trials aboard the battleship USS Pennsylvania. In 1949 he graduated cum laude from Washington & Lee School of Law and joined the firm of Dodson & Pence, where he practiced law for 26 years. In 1975, Mr. Coulter was appointed Virginia Circuit Court Judge of the 23rd Judicial Circuit, presiding over thousands of cases and served with distinction. He was recognized for his scholarship in numerous written legal opinions. Upon his retirement in 1989, he was presented the Keys to the City by the Roanoke City Council. An active community leader, Judge Coulter served on the Roanoke School Board, was President of the Roanoke Jaycees, President to the W&L Law School Association and was a member of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association. Judge Coulter led the development of the Roanoke Valley War Memorial Committee, serving as its Chairman. He championed the Memorial's theme poem, "Lest we Forge", reminding citizens never to forget the sacrifices of those service men and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Jack was a life long student, advocating continuing education and earning his Masters of Judicial Process from the University of Virginia. As a catcher on the Jefferson High School and Naval Academy baseball teams, he shared his love of athletics and physical activity with the youth of the Roanoke Valley, earning the distinction as Father of the Year in 1969. Jack was a member of the Second Presbyterian Church of Roanoke. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Jeanne Hodges Coulter of Roanoke and a brother, N. Arthur Coulter, Jr. of Greenville, N.C. He is also survived by children, David C. Coulter and wife, Susan of Cary, N.C.; Philip C. Coulter and wife, Linda of Roanoke and Kathy C. Temple and husband, Ben of Roanoke; nine grandchildren, Christopher Cutchin Coulter, Jonathan Bayne Coulter, Matthew Donovan Coulter, Kathryn Clarke Temple, Mary Kimball Temple, Margaret Anderson Coulter and David Andrew Coulter and two stepgrandchildren, Nathan R. Mullens and James H. Mullens, IV. Visitation will be at Oakey's downtown on Sunday, September 16, 2007, from 4 to 6 p.m. A memorial service celebrating the resurrection will be held on Monday, September 17, 2007, at 11 a.m., at the Second Presbyterian Church. Dr. George C. Anderson will officiate. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the National D-Day Memorial Foundation in Bedford, Va.

Jack married Jeanne Clarke Hodges, daughter of Joel Cutchin Hodges and Ina Cleveland Clarke, circa 1945. (Jeanne Clarke Hodges was born on 17 Jan 1925 in Roanoke City, Virginia and died on 2 Jan 2010 in Roanoke City, VA.)