A Celebration of Life!

John M. Coleman

9/1/52 - 5/16/08

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” – John 5: 24John M. Coleman, 55, of Bismarck died on May 16, 2008. Services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 20, at Charity Lutheran Church in Bismarck with Bob Nordvall officiating. Burial will be at Fairview Cemetery in Bismarck.Visitations for the public will be held on Monday from 12:00 – 6:00 p.m. at Parkway Funeral Service, 2330 Tyler Parkway, Bismarck. John was born on September 1, 1952, in Grand Forks, ND. While growing up, he enjoyed being with his family at the lake cabin, playing hockey, and his mother’s home-baked donuts. He went to college at UND where he met Ruth Dwyer and married her on August 2, 1975. He and Ruth have six children: Sam, an artist and youth pastor at Charity Lutheran Church, Sadie, a veterinarian in Grand Forks, Katie, a teacher at Horizon Middle School, Johnny, a student at Bismarck State College, Judah, a Sophomore in high school, and Charlie who is finishing up eighth grade. He worked as a Financial Planner for 30 years and loved working with his clients. He was certified as a Chartered Financial Consultant and a Chartered Life Underwriter. Between work, family, and friends, John loved to spend his time hunting, fishing (although he never caught very many for the hours spent doing it), camping, hiking, and wrestling with the kids, but the most important thing to John was his faith. He really wanted people to know that he loved the Lord and the love of Christ flowed through him to whomever he met. One way that he showed his love for Christ was in the way he treated people. He lived by the verse that says, “The greatest among you is the servant of all”, and he demonstrated this by his caring attitude and the acts of service he did for others. He loved his family more than anything and he was always there for them no matter what. He was the person to call when in trouble and he always responded by asking how you were doing first. During John’s 5-year battle with cancer, he showed tremendous courage and continued to serve and encourage others. He was also very selfless. Even when he was in pain, he never complained and always had a positive attitude. In every situation, he was always praising the Lord and finding the good in the bad times. His family and friends knew him as the most optimistic person they’d ever met. He is survived by his wife, Ruth; his six children, Sam (Sarah), Mandan, ND, Sadie (Nathan), Grand Forks, ND, Katie (Mike), Bismarck, ND, Johnny, Judah and Charlie, Bismarck, ND; his grandson, Ethan (Sadie and Nathan), Grand Forks, ND; his siblings, Jim (Kay), Detroit Lakes, MN, Joanne (John) Ader, Boulder Junction, WI, Trish Larson, St. Cloud, MN, Mike (Mary), Grand Forks, ND, and Tim (Marcia), Bozeman, MT; 10 brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law; and 46 nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Alice Coleman, Grand Forks, ND. John, we love you and will miss you immensely. This is a tremendous loss for everyone, but we know you are in Heaven having a blast fishing and catching the big one and God is saying: “WELL DONE, GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT!”

We already miss him like crazy!