Nancy Martin Coghlan
November 11, 1941 ~ December 4, 2025
Born in:
Miami, Florida
Resided in:
Denver, Colorado
Nancy Coghlan passed away peacefully on December 4, 2025, in Denver, Colorado at the age of 84. She was ready to leave this world after bravely enduring the cruelty of dementia and aphasia for several years. We have grieved her loss gradually, as our sharp, social, witty mom slowly disappeared over time. Her passing leaves a hole, but also a sense of gratitude for the end of her suffering.
Nancy was born on November 11, 1941, in Miami, Florida, the only child of Pierce Wood (P.W.) and Catherine (Katie) Dean Martin. As a child in Coral Gables, she was an excellent student with an affinity for singing and playing the piano. Lifelong friends recall a happy girl with a bouncy blonde ponytail who loved slumber parties, beach outings, and sharing inside jokes. Nancy stayed close to home for college, attending the University of Miami to study music. She became an accomplished organist and found a beloved community in Alpha Chi Omega sorority.
After two years of school, Nancy longed to leave home and see the world. She joined the U.S. Air Force as a phlebotomist based at Andrews AFB near Washington, DC. Nancy was immensely proud of her military service and loved sharing a birthday with Veteran’s Day every single November 11th for 60 years.
One day in the break room at Andrews, she declared to a friend that she planned to marry the next guy to walk through the door. As fate would have it, that guy was Vern Coghlan. She spent the next 55 years as his wife, business partner, co-parent, travel buddy, caregiver, and confidant.
Nancy was fiercely devoted to motherhood. She was the mom who never missed a swim meet, carpool pickup, dance recital, or Girl Scout camping trip. She was a meticulous seamstress, crafting perfect matching outfits for her little girls, custom prom dresses for her teenage girls, and Halloween costumes and christening gowns for her grandchildren. She made mountains of french toast for slumber party breakfasts. She may have “helped” finish more than one science fair project at the eleventh hour. She wrote the most wonderful, funny letters to her daughters at college every single week without fail. She was always, always, always there when we needed her to be.
Her life as an empty-nester was full of hobbies, activities, travel, and friends. Nancy was an avid hiker. She treasured the group of women who bonded over their adventures in the Colorado mountains, including summiting Pike’s Peak. She was a loyal member of the Colorado Springs alumnae chapter of Alpha Chi Omega, serving on the board and advising the CU Boulder collegiate chapter. She was overjoyed to share the Alpha Chi sisterhood with both daughters.
Nancy lost her husband, Vern, in 2023 and is surely sharing a box of Popeye’s Fried Chicken with him now. She is survived by daughters Kathy Coghlan Mecom (Jim) and Jill Coghlan-Uttridge (Mark), and her four grandchildren, Bennett and Kendall Mecom and Ryan and Eli Uttridge.
When the snow melts and spring arrives in Colorado, we will honor and celebrate Nancy at her final resting place next to Vern at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver. Details to come. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the National Aphasia Association in memory of Nancy.
In the words of her all-time favorite musician, John Denver, “Now the time has come to leave you. One more time, let me kiss you. Then close your eyes and I’ll be on my way.”
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