Biography: Lynn Craig Coates, 78, died on August 17, 2018. In addition to her roles as an exceptional wife, mother and grandmother, she will best be remembered as a selfless giver and a nurturing caretaker of gardens, families and friendships. Lynn was born on July 25, 1940 in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota to Eugene and Heckla Craig. After completing her education, she moved to San Francisco and became one of the first female stockbrokers in California. In 1967, she married David Bodman Coates, who was the love of her life throughout their 51 year partnership. After living briefly in Garden City, Long Island, they moved in 1970 to David?s boyhood home of Little Rock, Arkansas. Lynn was a difference maker who approached life with an ever present smile, unparalleled dedication and a continual ?to do? list. Her volunteer work reflected her diverse interests and included the Arkansas Arts Center, AETN, the City Beautiful Commission, the Little Rock Garden Club, the Decorative Arts Museum, the Little Rock School District, the West Little Rock Optimist Club and the Junior League of Little Rock. She instilled in her children and grandchildren a sense of wonder about the world, as well as the importance of giving back to others and speaking up for those who have not yet found their voice. When her youngest daughter was diagnosed with hearing loss, Lynn became a trailblazer for countless families, challenging expectations about what children who are deaf are capable of achieving. She established the Infant Hearing Program at the Arkansas Department of Health and pioneered legislation to ensure that all children born in the state are screened for hearing loss prior to leaving the hospital. She served on the National Board of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and was a founder and longtime President of the Arkansas Association for Hearing Impaired Children, the first organization of its kind in the state to recognize that deaf children can learn to listen and speak. Her legacy of love and giving will be carried on by her husband, David; three daughters, Amy Stockinger of Waukesha, Wisconsin, Sara Myhre (Wesley) of Charlottesville, Virginia and Caroline Nelson (Russell) of Branson, Missouri; three grandchildren, Elise Anne Stockinger, Franklin David Myhre and Joseph Howard Myhre; and her brother and sister-in-law Bryce & Sandra Craig. Memorials may be made to the Lynn Coates and Caroline Coates-Nelson Endowed Scholarship in the Department of Audiology & Speech Pathology at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock (UA Little Rock Foundation, 2801 S. University Ave, Little Rock, AR, 72204), Grace Presbyterian Church, or the Little Rock Garden Club (P.O. Box 7613, Little Rock, AR 72217). A Celebration of Life will be held on Tuesday, August 28 at 11:00 a.m. at Grace Presbyterian Church, 9301 North Rodney Parham Road, Little Rock, AR.