William H Coleman

Bill was born in Mineola, New York, on December 18, 1931. His family lived in Williston Park before moving to Manhasset in 1941. He attended public schools through the 10th grade and graduated from the Clark School in Hanover, New Hampshire, in 1949.

Bill went on to attend Washington and Lee University, where he earned a B.S. in Business Administration in 1953 and was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. Following graduation, he served two years in the United States Navy, stationed at the Severn River Naval Command in Annapolis, Maryland. After his honorable discharge, he earned a master’s degree from New York University.

In 1958, Bill married Janet Haaga of the Bronx, New York. They shared a loving marriage of 68 years and built a wonderful life together. Following their wedding, Bill and Janet moved to Florida, where he joined his father in the family-owned business, Florida Press Inc., a commercial printing company.

Bill had a lifelong commitment to service, particularly through Rotary International. He joined the Rotary Club of Orlando in 1964 and later became a charter member of the Rotary Club of West Orlando, serving as its president in 1971. He went on to serve Rotary International as District Governor in 1992 and was honored as a Paul Harris Fellow. At the time of his death, he was a member of the Altamonte Springs Rotary Club. Bill and Janet shared many adventures through Rotary, attending 34 international Rotary conventions together around the world.

Faith and service were also central to Bill’s life. He was a member of the First Congregational Church of Winter Park for more than 50 years, where he served as president of the Plymouth Senior Living Community. Later, he became a member of Altamonte Chapel and served as president of the Altamonte Chapel Foundation. His commitment to helping others extended to philanthropy as well, including sponsoring a nursing scholarship at Advent University.

Bill was also recognized for his extraordinary generosity as a blood donor, donating 64 gallons of blood to the Central Florida Blood Bank and receiving numerous awards in recognition of his contributions.

He enjoyed golf and cherished spending time with family and friends at the Country Club of Orlando, where he had been a member since 1967. In his later years, one of his favorite daily traditions was heading to Dunkin’ Donuts at 5:00 each morning, where he met his buddies, shared conversation, and solved all the world’s problems.

Bill is survived by his beloved wife, Janet; their three children, Nancy Edmunds (Bob), Barbara Kinson (Doug), and Tom Coleman (Zhanka); eight grandchildren, Cole Kinson (Allison), Katie Edmunds, Cassidy Ostolaza (Christian), Foster Coleman, Ashley Edmunds, Ford Coleman, Kaley Kinson, and Margaret Anne Coleman; and one great-grandchild, Lucile Kinson.

He was a great man who was deeply loved and will be missed immensely by all who had the privilege of knowing him.