We celebrate the life of Arclethia Coleman, on what would have been her 69th birthday ...or as she would have called it: “the 40th anniversary of her 29th birthday.” Arclethia was a mother, a big sister, a beloved aunt, a computer programmer, a world traveler, and a friend to many. She passed away unexpectedly, but peacefully, in her sleep on April 21, 2020, at her home in Dallas, Texas.
This obituary will open with Arclethia’s own words (found on an old draft of her resume). The opening paragraph reads, “It all started in a humble cottage in Waukegan, Ill. I was the first of 8 children born to Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph Coleman, poor but honest parents...” Anyone who knew her parents, knows “poor but honest” was a correct description of her mother, but “honest” hardly described her father. That was the joke.
That was Arclethia: a funny, smart, and beautiful spirit as unique as her name.
She didn’t have a middle name (what could you possibly pair with the first name Arclethia?), and outside of family members, she didn’t use a nickname. To address her, you either learned to pronounce her first name correctly (Are-CLEE-thee-uh), or she allowed you to call her “Ms. Coleman.” Those were your options, because those were her rules.
She was born in Waukegan, Illinois on August 16, 1951, to Mattie Bell (née Sims) and Rudolph Coleman, Sr., the oldest of eight siblings: Alice. Annette, Patrick, Rudolph Jr., Jerry, and three sisters who preceded her in death: Barbara, Theresa, and Tiola. She is survived by a daughter Candace (Richard), s on Brian, and her grandchildren: Christopher, Coleman Jared, Kyndall, as well as other family and friends who all grieve her loss.
As a young person, she became interested in computers and computer programming. After completing high school, she began her professional career working for the government at Great Lakes Naval Base as a Data Entry Operator. She spent nearly a decade working there until pain and swelling in her leg led to a diagnosis of “impaired circulation and recurring blood clots” that forced the naval base to medically retire her.
Being faced with such a serious diagnosis spurred Arclethia to start living her life fearlessly. Her first step was to leave the security of everything and everyone she knew, pack up her two small children, and move away from Illinois. Family lore recounts the story of how she decided where. She bought a package of darts, a large map of the U.S., and got a blindfold. She announced to her sisters that wherever the dart landed would be where she’d move. With them gathered around her, a blindfolded Arclethia threw her dart.
It landed in the state of Texas.
Arclethia packed up the kids and moved to the Lone Star State. She did this without knowing anyone there, and without having a car, a job, or a place for them to live. This was in the late 70s, before Uber, the Internet, cellphones, and even before public transit was available in the city she just moved to. Arclethia would search for jobs in the newspaper and use the apartment’s payphone to schedule job interviews. She simply informed all of her new neighbors of what she was doing, and they were kind enough to answer the payphone when it rang and take messages for her (leave it to Arclethia to turn an apartment complex full of strangers into her very own answering service!). It worked too, because, in less than a month, she landed a job as Data Entry Supervisor at Texas Commerce Bank.
After a few years, she took a job in the Computer Department of a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in Dallas, Texas. At Bishop College (now Paul Quinn College), Arclethia worked as a computer programmer, writing code for the school’s billing system and student enrollment programs. Eventually, Arclethia was promoted to Acting Director of the Computer Center. She enjoyed her work and mentored students wanting to pursue a career in computer programming. For her volunteer mentoring, in 1986 she was named “Class Role Model.” While working full-time and mentoring students, Arclethia also continued her education, receiving three certifications in computer languages from IBM Technical School.
In 1997, Arclethia faced more medical challenges after being bitten on the ankle by a highly venomous Brown Recluse spider. Her previous issues with poor circulation made the wound slow to heal, but also may have kept her from losing her leg because of how slowly the venom circulated in the affected limb. Years of treatment included two muscle grafts, nine skin grafts, and two bouts with MRSA. She survived, but it worsened her circulation problems and left permanently disabled.
Once again, tragedy motivated Arclethia. She always wanted to see the world, so she started saving and planning. For her first trip, she flew to the UK and visited London and Paris by herself. Arclethia loved to travel alone. She said that she actually preferred it, because it afforded her the freedom of experiencing the trip on her own terms, as opposed to traveling with a tour group or with a companion with whom she’d have to negotiate an itinerary.
After Europe, she traveled to Greece (with her granddaughter's “Flat Stanley” along for the ride). She visited St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the Netherlands, and Prague. With each trip, she became more adventuresome with her planning (or lack thereof). She’d often book her flight, but not a hotel room, figuring that she’d just find hostels to stay in after she landed. In Prague, this freewheeling approach once resulted in her being detained by Prague airport authorities. They were suspicious of an American traveling unaccompanied and without hotel arrangements. When they asked her why she was traveling alone, she chirped, “Because I’m my own best friend!” (And while that may have been true at the time, perhaps while being detained in a foreign country for suspicion of being a drug mule, might not have been the best time to say so!). Though she was released after a few hours no worse for wear, the experience didn’t stop her from thoroughly enjoying her trip, plus it made for a great story when she safely returned home!
There are many great “Arclethia stories.” She started creating, but never completed, an online travel blog called “The Travel Granny,” with a goal of encouraging older people to travel without fear (as she did) and sharing tips that she’d learned in her travels. Arclethia did so much with the life she was given, too much to list here. She co-founded and operated a data entry business that ran for 10 years and employed many. She went back to college (at the same time and on the same campus as her youngest grandson). She continued to learn, grow, and plan for more trips. It is difficult to accept that she is no longer with us, but we must
Because of her health issues, Arclethia often said that she never expected to live this long. She said, more than once, that she had lived the life that she wanted to live, did all of the things that she wanted to do, and that she’d be content with dying. On the keychain that Arclethia carried is a 2-sided pouch. On one side, Arclethia kept her passport photo and the other side held an old fortune cookie fortune that says, “Always be yourself and you’ll never go out of style.”
That was Arclethia: a funny, smart, and beautiful spirit as unique as her name.
