Shirley M. Coulter

Shirley M. Coulter (Denham), age 90, passed away sleeping peacefully at Dimensions Living in Appleton, Wisconsin, on August 20, 2026. She was born in Chicago Heights, Illinois, on May 1, 1936, the daughter of the late Amos and Dora (Eply) Denham.

Shirley lived in Glenwood, Illinois, graduated high school, and on January 14, 1954, she married her husband of 69 years, George Coulter. She went on to earn an education degree from the Pestalozzi-Froebel Teacher’s College in Chicago, Illinois. She taught grade school in South Holland, Illinois, until 1967, when the family moved to New London, Wisconsin. She taught in Sugar Bush, Readfield, and finally Lincoln Elementary School in the New London School District until 1995, when she retired.

After retiring, Shirley and George co-authored a series of science books for children, gave science shows called “Flash, Bang, and a Puff of Smoke” at elementary schools, and at the Wisconsin Academy System taught teachers how to make science classes fun. Shirley and George moved to Cambridge, Wisconsin, in 2001, where she was an avid quilter, making hundreds of quilts for charity; planted flower gardens; and walked her little white dog, Zoey.

Shirley is survived by her children, Holly Lawton (Dan), Mark Coulter (Marcia), Brian Coulter, and Victoria; her grandchildren, Ann, Patrick, Jason, and Jarrod; her great-grandchildren, Sage, Indigo, Finn, Olive, Kade, Madelyn, Malia, and Riley. She was preceded in death by her husband, George; her parents, Amos and Dora; her brothers and sister, Fred, Ken, and Sharon; and her great-grandson, Sierra.

No formal services will be held. She will be laid to rest with her husband at Evergreen Cemetery in Fort Atkinson, WI.  To honor Shirley, please consider making a donation to your local Public Library, Humane Society, or charity of your choice.

The family expresses a special thank you to the staff at Our House Assisted Living in Cambridge, Wisconsin, and Dimensions Living in Appleton, Wisconsin, and Bristol Hospice.