Peter Reed Coughlan was born July 19, 1931 in Poughkeepsie, New York. He was the fifth child and 3rd son of Emmet P. and Katharine R. Coughlan. Following graduation from Kent School in Connecticut, Peter rowed bow in the victorious Kent crew that won the Thames Challenge Cup at the Royal Henley Regatta in 1950. A member of the celebrated Yale Class of 1954, Peter graduated with a BA in Economics. He joyfully sang with the Yale Glee Club, the Alleycats, and the Whiffenpoofs of 1954. He was also a member of St Anthony Hall.

Following graduation, Peter served in the US Navy from 1954 to 1957. As LT (JG) he was active in both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. Among his proudest memories was skippering the large ships into port. Returning home, he earned an MBA in Accounting in 1958 from Rutgers University. Much of his professional career was in financial management for non-profit and for-profit Greater Boston area companies including Price Waterhouse, the Boston United Way and the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

Together with his beloved wife Cecily (Baker) they raised a family of four, first in Marblehead, MA and then in North Andover, MA for 27 years. Upon retirement and the death of his wife, Peter joined the Peace Corps as a privatization advisor based in Krakow, Poland from 1995-1996. He stayed on in Poland for an additional year conducting a feasibility study for USAID in 1997.

Peter retired a second time in late 1997 and moved full time to Orrs Island, Maine where he lived until 2019. He returned to singing, re-uniting with the Whiffenpoofs and traveled annually to perform concerts. Then he joined forces with his daughters and moved to a horse farm in Woolwich, Maine. There he supervised the four horses, two rescue dogs, 1 rescue kitty and the operations of the farm. An avid sailor, Peter could be found cruising his Bristol 32’, the “Cecily B”, down the Maine coast and beyond throughout his retirement. At the boat yard he was first-in in April and last-out in early November spending every possible day on the water. He helped friends deliver sail boats to Florida and happily cruised in the Bahamas and Virgin Islands as well. In the past year, he proudly celebrated 39 years of sobriety. He was always quietly there for those searching for help.

Peter was pre-deceased by his wife, Cecily Baker Coughlan and his youngest daughter Cecily Carlisle Coughlan. He is survived by his children Peter Baker Coughlan (Harpswell, Me), Christine DeCoursey Coughlan (Woolwich, Me) , Poe Coughlan Cilley (Woolwich, Me), his two grandsons Tristan Hunter Cilley (Biddeford, Me) and Jonathan Connor Cilley and his granddaughter-in-law Danica Kohut Cilley (Manchester, NH).