Gary Ross Cohagan, 67, died on Saturday, March 3 in Forest Ranch, California.
He was born on April 5, 1944 in Hord, Nebraska. His family moved to Escalon, California when he was a toddler. He participated in numerous sports throughout elementary and high school and went on to college to play football for Fresno State University. After college he played for a short time with the San Francisco 49ers as well as the Dallas Cowboys.
After his brief professional football career, Mr. Cohagan met Holly Jill Bassett. She was the love of his life. The two were married on June 16, 1969 in Carmel, California. They were happily married for 42 years and had three children: Phillip, Asheley and Allison. The family was raised in both Fresno and Clovis, California.
Mr. Cohagan loved the outdoors. He spent much of his free time at his parents' cabin in Strawberry, California. He also loved fishing and hunting and spent hundreds of weekends and vacations with dear friends and family out on the water, in the duck blinds or scouting the mountains and fields. He was truly at peace in the open air.
Mr. Cohagan loved working with children and teaching science. He went into teaching and worked for Fresno and Clovis Unified for a total of 38 years. The majority of his career, he taught GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) in Clovis Unified and achieved accolades including: Teacher of the Year and Science Fair Teacher of the Year for the state of California. He enjoyed coaching extracurricular activities such as football, basketball, Science Fair, and Odyssey of the Mind. For many years during the summer, he worked at Wawona Ranch, in Clovis, California managing the packing shed for Bill and Earl Smittcamp. Shortly after retirement from teaching, Gary and Jill moved to Forest Ranch, California.
Survivors include his beloved wife, Holly Jill Cohagan; his mother, Gladys Cohagan; his sister, Nancy Harvey and family: Ernie, Andrea, Adam, Hunter, Emalee and Monica; his son, Phillip and his family: Sherry and Cassandra Cohagan; his oldest daughter, Asheley, son-in-law, Jeff and grandchildren, Benjamin and Elly Anne Schraeder; his youngest daughter, Allison, and her boyfriend, Trent Dieke.
He was preceded in death by his father, Gerald Cohagan; his grandmother and uncle, Amelia and Ralph Carlson; his sister, Cheryl Gonzalez as well as his nephew, Eric Harvey.
Mr. Cohagan will be remembered for his courage, his kindness, his generosity and his love of learning. He was loved by all who knew him and will be deeply missed, but always remembered.
The Escalon (Calif.) Times
March 28, 2012
He was born on April 5, 1944 in Hord, Nebraska. His family moved to Escalon, California when he was a toddler. He participated in numerous sports throughout elementary and high school and went on to college to play football for Fresno State University. After college he played for a short time with the San Francisco 49ers as well as the Dallas Cowboys.
After his brief professional football career, Mr. Cohagan met Holly Jill Bassett. She was the love of his life. The two were married on June 16, 1969 in Carmel, California. They were happily married for 42 years and had three children: Phillip, Asheley and Allison. The family was raised in both Fresno and Clovis, California.
Mr. Cohagan loved the outdoors. He spent much of his free time at his parents' cabin in Strawberry, California. He also loved fishing and hunting and spent hundreds of weekends and vacations with dear friends and family out on the water, in the duck blinds or scouting the mountains and fields. He was truly at peace in the open air.
Mr. Cohagan loved working with children and teaching science. He went into teaching and worked for Fresno and Clovis Unified for a total of 38 years. The majority of his career, he taught GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) in Clovis Unified and achieved accolades including: Teacher of the Year and Science Fair Teacher of the Year for the state of California. He enjoyed coaching extracurricular activities such as football, basketball, Science Fair, and Odyssey of the Mind. For many years during the summer, he worked at Wawona Ranch, in Clovis, California managing the packing shed for Bill and Earl Smittcamp. Shortly after retirement from teaching, Gary and Jill moved to Forest Ranch, California.
Survivors include his beloved wife, Holly Jill Cohagan; his mother, Gladys Cohagan; his sister, Nancy Harvey and family: Ernie, Andrea, Adam, Hunter, Emalee and Monica; his son, Phillip and his family: Sherry and Cassandra Cohagan; his oldest daughter, Asheley, son-in-law, Jeff and grandchildren, Benjamin and Elly Anne Schraeder; his youngest daughter, Allison, and her boyfriend, Trent Dieke.
He was preceded in death by his father, Gerald Cohagan; his grandmother and uncle, Amelia and Ralph Carlson; his sister, Cheryl Gonzalez as well as his nephew, Eric Harvey.
Mr. Cohagan will be remembered for his courage, his kindness, his generosity and his love of learning. He was loved by all who knew him and will be deeply missed, but always remembered.
The Escalon (Calif.) Times
March 28, 2012
