Kellis Lee Coffman

Kellis Lee Coffman, age 59, found everlasting peace on Sunday, January 11, 2026 at his home in McDonough, Georgia.

Born August 20, 1966 in Booneville, Missouri to Robert Coffman and the late Clara (Huber) Coffman, Kellis embodied the values of his parents and the Ozark land that raised him. While he preferred the back roads to the highway, he also enjoyed competition and pushing himself, and he was fascinated with how things worked. For a boy growing up in 70s and 80s' Missouri, that meant baseball-he loved to be on the mound-, basketball, dirtbikes (some would say he was a "helluva" motocross rider), and working on cars, an interest in part because of his grandfather Everett Coffman's shop in Versailles. Many would tell you they had never met anyone smarter.

Kellis brought this same childhood curiosity to his work. After studying Electronics Engineering Technology at DeVry Institute of Technology in Kansas City, he took his talents and young family to Shizuki Electric in Ogallala, NE. There, not only did his family grow (by two), but so did his professional impact. Over the years, Kellis applied his engineering expertise at Robertson Transformer (Blue Island, IL), Holophane (Newark, OH), and Acuity Brands (Conyers, GA and Decatur, GA).

Kellis was generous, good-humored, and game for adventure. It was nothing for him to help a down- and-out stranger at a gas station to get back on her way. He coached Little League baseball for years-even after a three-hour daily commute-, and routinely showed up at the neighborhood pool with a cooler full of popsicles for all the kids. He loved to laugh and never missed a chance to tell a joke.

He took immense joy in being a father of four and a grandpa. It's believed he outlasted even the bride in getting ready for the father-daughter dance in Jamaica. He wanted it to be just right, after all.

He lived life with gusto-golfing (and triumphantly checking a hole-in-one off his bucket list), shooting trap, body surfing at Myrtle Beach (where he rescued two people from a rip tide), and quoting famous 90s' movie lines with the best of them. An Ohio State Buckeyes fan to the core, he bled scarlet and gray and savored every game with his second-oldest son.

He dabbled as a numismatist, tuned into The History Channel regularly, and could be counted on to watch Lonesome Dove every year. Like anyone who plays it, he both loved and loathed fantasy football. Kellis was a proud Chrysler 300 owner, known to tell those who drove it, especially his youngest son, to "kick it!" with a grin.

Kellis would explain to you "Mr. Coffman" was not his preferred nomenclature. He was simply Kellis; or, Papa-to both his grandchildren and the children his wife nannied; Callous or Baba Ghanoush to his oldest child; and occasionally, Kelly, but only for select family members.

Above all, though, he was widely known as Hans, a self-chosen nickname, allegedly in honor of an ancestor on his mother's side-though it's entirely possible he just thought it sounded cool.

Kellis is survived by his loving wife of 41 years, Darla Coffman; his three sons: Kyle (Jennifer) Coffman of Fort Wayne, IN; Collen Coffman of McDonough, GA; Keaton Coffman of Newark, OH; his daughter Katie (Josh) Smith of Newark, OH; Two grandchildren: Theodore Coffman and Ronin Smith; his father, Robert (Wanda) Coffman; his sister, Melinda (Dan) Wilson, along with many other family and friends who will miss him.

Kellis is preceded in death by his mother, Clara.

Visitation will be held Friday, January 16, 2026 from 5 PM - 7 PM at Phillips Funeral Home in Eldon,

MO. Funeral services will be held at 3 PM, January 17, 2026 at Ninth Street Church in Eldon, MO. with Russell Cobb officiating. Graveside services will follow immediately after funeral services with Phil McKinley officiating with a Celebration of Life reception at Ninth Street Church after the graveside services.

Memorials in his name are suggested In Care of the Family.

Arrangements are under the direction and care of Phillips Funeral Home of Eldon, MO.