Rita F (King) Coughlin

Rita F. (King) Coughlin, formerly of Malden, MA and Germantown, TN, passed away peacefully in Birmingham, AL on January 11, 2025 surrounded by those who loved her. She was 96 years old.

Rita was born on December 29, 1928 in Boston, MA as a twin daughter of the late Ralph J. and Mildred M. (Mulvey) King. She graduated from Cheverus Catholic High School in Malden, MA and worked as a telephone operator in Malden and later in Ramsey, NJ.

Rita married Frank J. Coughlin in 1954 and together they raised three daughters in Malden, MA, Buffalo, NY, Bowie, MD, Ramsey, NJ, and Germantown, TN. They shared 54 years of marriage until Frank's death in 2008.

Rita was a member of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church and The Rosary Makers in Germantown, TN for 38 years. She moved to Birmingham, AL in 2014 to be closer to her daughter, Janice (David) Haley and her two grandsons, Jordan and Jared Haley.

She loved playing bridge, bowling, dancing, going to the casinos, college basketball, especially the University of Memphis, the beach, and traveling with her husband.

Rita was preceded in death by her husband, Frank J. Coughlin, twin sister, Margaret (Peggy) Rice, brothers, William and Ralph King, Jr., and grandson, Clifford Stringer.

She is survived by daughters, Janice (David) Haley of Birmingham, AL, Judith Holder of Memphis, TN, and Jacquelin Coughlin of Seattle, WA, and grandsons, Jordan (Lauren) Haley of Orlando, FL and Jared Haley of Vero Beach, FL.

Visitation in celebration of Rita's life will be held at Weir Mac Cush Family Funeral Home, 144 Salem St, Malden, MA from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on January, 21, 2025. A funeral mass will be held at Sacred Hearts Catholic Church, 297 Main St., Malden, MA at 11:00 a.m. on January 22, 2025. Interment will be at Puritan Lawn Memorial Park in Peabody, MA.

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