Joe Coots obit

‘He made everybody feel like a friend’: Community mourns the loss of performer Joe Coots

 

He was not on the list.

The legacy of Winnebago native and actor Joe Coots stretches all the way from Rock Valley’s Starlight Theater to Broadway and beyond.

Since the news of Coots death broke Wednesday, a flurry of posts flooded social media from those whose lives were touched by the man many called larger than life.

Kevin Jensen, a fellow performer and a retired Harlem music teacher, remembers the big personality that made everyone Coots met feel loved and appreciated. It’s memories like that, Jensen says define a person’s legacy.

“Everyone’s going to be different but they’re all going to have a common thread,” Jensen said. “And that is we were all lucky to know a guy like that.”

Remembering his time at Starlight, Jensen says Coots may not have been right for every role but the roles he was, he was perfect.

Jodi Beach met Coots through Starlight Theater in the early 90s. She says it’s hard to remember the first show he was in because it’s difficult to imagine a show he wasn’t in.

During a production of “Meet Me in St. Louis,” Beach says the cast came up with nicknames involving the word “bear”. From there the nickname “CoostieBear” stuck.

“He gave these giant bear hugs,” Beach remembered. “A hug from Joe Coots is the best hug.”

Beach says Coots chased his dream all the way to the lights of Broadway and beyond. He joined the national tours of “The Full Monty” and “Kinky Boots” as well as several small appearances on the small screen. She believes his story is a testament to the idea that dreams really do come true.

“Never had an ounce of arrogance about him, just this is what he loved to do so he was going to go and do it,” Beach said. “I think he continues to inspire people.”

Longtime friend of Coots, Brad Hoey, tells WIFR that while the two met while working at Northern Illinois University, their family’s long history made them far from strangers.

But, Hoey says, no one was ever really a stranger to Coots, a man who considered every person he came across as his friend.

Hoey shares that Coots officially worked at NIU for a few years, but after he left, he dedicated his time to helping student athletes follow their dreams.

“He appreciated from his parents and his siblings the support that they gave him when he was pursuing his dream and he wanted to be able to give back,” Hoey said. “Not just to his family but to his community and to young people have a dream similar to Joe’s.”

There is no word yet on when a memorial service will take place for Coots, but friends ask to keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.

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