KINGSTON — Family and friends of Tom Coultas celebrated his life on April 22 at Grace Church, Bainbridge Island.
There was a lot to celebrate. He was a husband, father, grandfather; port commissioner, teacher, commercial fisherman. And, those who remembered him said, he was a mentor and friend.
Coultas died on March 20, surrounded by his family, at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle. He was 74.
Thomas Anthony Coultas was born on May 23, 1942 in Bemidji, Minnesota. His family moved to Bainbridge Island when he was six months old.
He graduated from Bainbridge High School in 1960 and, according to his obituary, stayed close to his classmates — nicknamed “The Untouchables” — for more than 56 years.
Coultas attended Olympic College and then transferred to Central Washington University to finish his bachelor of arts in education. He met his future wife, Diane, while attending CWU; they married on Sept. 23, 1966 in Seattle. After two years living in Edmonds, the couple bought property in Kingston, built a home and raised their children, Jennifer and Tom.
Coultas taught industrial arts for 27 years in the Edmonds School District. “He maintained friendships with many students following their graduation,” his obituary states.
In addition to teaching, he spent summers as a commercial salmon fisherman.
He served on the Kingston Port Commission for 24 years before retiring in 2011, after losing a bid for a fifth term. As a port commissioner, he was involved in the redevelopment of the Port of Kingston Marina into a regional destination.
“I worked with Tom for years,” said Kori Henry, who served as port general manager during Coultas’ service on the commission. She is now executive assistant to the North Kitsap School District superintendent.
“He was my commissioner when I was project manager at the Port of Kingston and he was my mentor for years. I would never have been as good of a manager as I am without his mentorship.”
Kingston Port Commissioner Mary McClure said of Coultas, “Tom always looked at ideas from a broad community perspective. When the farmers market was first started in Kingston, he asked good, hard questions about its broad appeal. It was tough, but somebody had to do it. He really cared a lot about this community and will be missed.”
Coultas is survived by his wife of 50 years, Diane; daughter, Jennifer, of Los Angeles; son, Tom (Jenn), of Kingston; and grandchildren, Madison and Aaron, of Los Angeles.
