Henry F. Coyne

1937 - 2019

CAMP HILL - Henry F. Coyne, of Camp Hill, a respected attorney, distinguished military officer, active civic leader and irreplaceable center of his family, died peacefully at home Thursday, April 25, 2019, surrounded by his loving children and grandchildren.

Henry was born Aug. 8, 1937, in Shamokin, the oldest of seven children of the late Cletus J. Coyne and Alice M. (Kealy) Coyne. He was a proud native of Pennsylvania's Anthracite coal region, originating from Locust Gap, a small "patch" on the outskirts of Mount Carmel.

He was a 1955 graduate of Mount Carmel High School and was a member of the 1954 Mount Carmel championship football team. In 1997, Henry was inducted into the Ed Romance Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. He attended Gettysburg College on a four-year football scholarship and was 1957 United Press All-State Selection offensive lineman. Upon graduation in 1959, he was invited to try out with the Cleveland Browns, but had to decline due to military service obligations.

Henry earned his Bachelor of Science and was a distinguished military graduate of the U.S. Army ROTC. He was commissioned in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant in 1959. Henry honored his country and this commonwealth by serving in the U.S. Army, U.S. Army Reserves and Pennsylvania Army National Guard for a total of 38 combined years of honorable service. He attained the rank of colonel and was promoted to brigadier general on the retired list of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. He was a 1984 graduate of the U.S. Army War College and, while on active duty, he was stationed at Fort Sill, Oklahoma (field artillery), and Fort Knox, Kentucky (armor). He served as battery commander with the 104th Armored Calvary Regiment, as well as served on the adjutant general's staff for the Pennsylvania Army National Guard at Headquarters, Pennsylvania Army National Guard. Military awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Pennsylvania Distinguished Service Medal.

In 1966, Henry received his Juris Doctorate from the Dickinson School of Law and in 1968, he established his law office in Hampden Township, Cumberland County, with the help of his late wife, who was the bookkeeper and office manager. In 1993, he was joined in the practice by his daughter, Lisa Marie Coyne. In 2018, the law offices of Coyne & Coyne, P.C. celebrated their 50th year in the practice of law and continue to be the longest-established law firm in Hampden Township.

His civilian legal career includes solicitorships to Cumberland County municipalities, municipal authorities and zoning hearing boards; with longest serving as solicitor to East Pennsboro Township Board of Commissioners and the Hampden Township Sewer Authority. He was also legal counsel to the Labor Relations Committee of the Pennsylvania House of Representative (Hon. A.J. Valicenti).

Henry was a recognized leader in the legal community, held the position of president of the Cumberland County Bar Association (CCBA) and the Cumberland County Inns of Court, was also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Cumberland County Bar Foundation. In 2011, he was awarded the Distinguish Member Award by the CCBA in recognition for his dedication to the legal profession and the steadfast ideals he epitomized as a lawyer in Cumberland County.

Henry, like his hero, Harry S. Truman, came from a working-class background and never forgot his roots or the working-class people he served and protected. If he was not in school, he worked as a coal miner, a dairy worker, a bartender in his family's barroom and a laborer on the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

His priorities in life were his family, his faith, service to his country… and Notre Dame football. He was a proud Irish Catholic Democrat - proud of his ancestry as a descendant of Patrick Hester, a Molly Maguire. For many years also, Henry served on the executive committee of the Cumberland County Democratic Committee and was a leader in local Democratic politics.

Coyne was an active member of the Knights of Columbus (4th Degree), B.P.O. Elks, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the American Legion Post No. 0231, and the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 41-A. He was a member of the Church of the Good Shepherd and served on the parish advisory committee for many years.

Henry is survived by his four children and nine grandchildren. His children include a son, Henry F. Coyne III, of Royersford, and his wife, Linda, and two children, Henry IV and Emily; a daughter, Lisa Marie Coyne Esq., of Mechanicsburg; a daughter, Constance C. Sajer, of Camp Hill, and her husband, Frank, and three children, Sara, Megan and Kathleen; and a daughter, Colleen C. Sweeney Esq., of Orlando, Florida, and her husband, Patrick, and four children, Seamus, Eileen, Liam and Quinn. He is also survived by his sisters, Loretta M. Dougherty, (Thomas), of Camp Hill, Rosemary C. Demko, (Thomas, deceased), of Barnesville, and Anne R. Mongiello, (Lou), of Ardmore; a brother, Robert P. Coyne Esq., (Marie), of Mechanicsburg; and Kathleen C. Curley, (Paul), of Monroeville; as well as many cousins, nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his true love, his wife of 54 years, the late Eileen B. (Bach) Coyne; as well as his brother, the Rev. Joseph C. Coyne.

COYNE - Henry F. Coyne, of Camp Hill. Public visitation will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Malpezzi Funeral Home, 8 Market Plaza Way, Mechanicsburg. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated by the Rev. Philip G. Burger at the Church of the Good Shepherd, 3435 Trindle Road, Camp Hill, at 10 a.m. Friday. Interment will follow at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery at 2:30 p.m. Friday. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Pennsylvania Wounded Warrior Foundation, 1117 Country Club Road, Camp Hill 17011. To sign the online guestbook, go to www.MalpezziFuneralHome.com.