George A. Coburn

MADISON -- George A. Coburn, 67, died Saturday, July 1, 2009. Born in Jefferson, Iowa on March 8, 1942 to Melba L. and Edmund A. Coburn, George grew up in Des Moines where he graduated from North High School.

Pursuing a lifelong love of radio, George studied at Brown Institute in Minneapolis and began his career as a disc jockey in Perry, Iowa. From there, his radio days took him to Ottumwa and Cedar Rapids, Iowa and then Poynette and Madison, Wis.

Along the way, he discovered his talent for radio news reporting and lent his distinctive voice to several Madison area stations, such as WLVE, WTSO and Z-104. Most recently, George worked for The Wheeler Report, where he managed its website and covered activities of the state Legislature.

George loved classic cars and convertibles, his family, his cats, baseball, laser tag, flying kites and anything tropical. He was known for his gentle, dry humor.

He is survived by his wife, Judy Newman Coburn; daughter, Leslie Schuman, of Minneapolis; son, Danny Coburn; in-laws, Jules and Lorraine Newman; and brother-in-law, Joel Newman and his wife, Jennifer and their daughters, Sarah and Liora, of Needham, Mass.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Funeral services will be held at CRESS FUNERAL HOME, 3610 Speedway Rd., on Wednesday, July 15, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. with Pastor Bill W Wienke officiating. A visitation will be held at the funeral home on Tuesday, July 14, 2009 from 4 to 7 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Paul C. Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, 600 Highland Ave., Madison 53792-8350, or the Society for Melanoma Research, c/o Site Solutions Worldwide, P.O. Box 215, Burnt Hills, NY 12027.