Donald A Coffin

Donald A Coffin, 78, of Indianapolis, died on September 2, 2026. He was born on February 4, 1948 to the late Richard and LaVerne Coffin.

Don grew up in the Irvington neighborhood of Indianapolis. He attended Thomas Carr Howe High School, graduating in 1965. While at Howe, Don participated in Speech/Debate and was on the editorial staff of the student newspaper, the Howe Tower. One of his favorite activities was the Quiz Team. The team appeared on the WLW-I TV show, moderated by George Willeford, Exercise in Knowledge. During Don’s final competition on the Howe team, they defeated Broad Ripple High School and won the 1965 City-County Championship.

In fall of 1965, Don entered DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana. At DePauw, he continued his interests in journalism and debate. In a class taught by Dr Ralph Gray, Don found his career niche, Microeconomics. After graduation from DePauw in 1969, Don earned his PhD in Economics from West Virginia University.

Don worked in Mayor Richard Lugar’s administration as an Urban Planner for the City of Indianapolis from 1976 to 1980. Deciding to pursue a career teaching Economics, he accepted a position at Illinois State University in 1980. From there, Don moved to Indiana University Northwest where he taught from 1987 to 2012. He was inducted as a member of the Faculty Academy on Excellence in Teaching (FACET) in its founding year1989. He received a Mack Center Fellowship from FACET and served the organization in many leadership roles.

Urban Economics was Don’s academic focus, but his heart belonged to baseball. He wrote, published and presented many studies on baseball economics. One often cited paper, “If You Build It, Will They Come?” was included in the book, “Baseball Economics: Current Research” by Fizel, Gustafson and Hadley.

Don didn’t just write about baseball. He tried to see a game in every stadium in the United States. The Dodgers were his favorite team, and he didn’t like the Yankees, but he’d watch any game. He liked to sit in the stands on the third base line, especially for spring training games. From there he could hear the players’ patter and see all the action on the field.

In 2009, Don reluctantly agreed to adopt Menina t Dog from the Alliance for Responsible Pet Ownership. He was not a dog lover. Menina patiently worked with him to overcome his indifference. She was quiet and gentle yet took her role as defender of the home very seriously. Don did not become a dog lover in general, but he very specifically adored Menina.

Over the years, Don developed interests in poetry, art, cooking and photography. He wrote Haiku, learned to cook, and took excellent photographs. He collected art. Don liked prints by the Japanese artist Haku Maki.

Don was intellectually curious, always asking questions. He was kind, generous, and fun. Don’s absence is deeply felt by his family and friends.

Don is survived by his brothers, David and Phil, his sister, Marjorie Marks, and his wife Loryne.

The family is grateful for the wonderful care Don received at American Village on 54th Street in Indianapolis and from Anew Hospice Care.

Memorial contributions may be made in Don’s memory to Alliance for Responsible Pet Ownership https://arporescue.org/, PO Box 6385, Fishers, IN 46038 or to DePauw University depauw.edu, 201 E Seminary St, Greencastle, IN 46135.