My cousin Eddie's 40th wedding anniversary (January 22, 2026)

 To mark the occasion of my first cousin, Eddie Coggins) 40th wedding anniversary today to his wife, Maureen, I decided to post a few things that I remember regarding them. Eddie is my first cousin by way of his mother, Norine Freeman Coggins Stanly, who was my mother's (Loretta Freeman Green) older sister.

Eddie and Maureen were married on January 22, 1986. I myself was finishing my senior year in college.

To the best of my recollection, the first time I remember meeting Maureen was when she and Eddie had brought their infant son, Tony (Edward Anthony Coggins), over for our grandmother, Veda Davis Freeman, to hold him. Our grandmother was blind, since before Eddie or I were ever born, and so she ran her hands over Tony's tiny face carefully. It was her way of sensing what he looked like. 

When Eddie and I were growing up, and were at our grandparents' house on Burton Street one summer afternoon (both of us were still in elementary school at the time), Eddie told me that when he had a son someday, that he didn't want to give him the middle name Harris, that he had. He had never liked the name Harris, which he shared with his father. He asked me what I thought was a good name to go with Edward to be a middle name. I told him that I'd always liked the name Anthony, and that Edward Anthony Coggins sounded good to me. He agreed, and said, "We could call him Tony." So when Eddie did indeed have a son with Maureen, apparently he'd remembered that childhood conversation. 

When Eddie joined the Air Force and was stationed various places, including Alaska, I wrote letters to him weekly. I felt like he might like to hear from someone here in North Carolina. Maureen told me once that even though Eddie might not tell me, that he counted on my letters and they meant a lot to him. 

Eddie and Maureen had a second child, Jessica Corinne Coggins, while they were in Alaska. Her middle name, Corinne is for my and Eddie's grandmother, Veda Corinna Davis Freeman. 

When Eddie and Maureen had their 25th wedding anniversary, they were to restaurant week in Charleston, SC, on a trip. Eddie told my mother the name of the Charleston restaurant that they were dining at on their actually anniversary night via telephone. I called the restaurant and ordered a bottle of anniversary champagne for them, and said, "Use your discretion based on what they order, but I want the nicest that you have in the house for them."

Eddie and Maureen have now moved to Goldsboro, NC, to live closer to Tony and his wife, Emily, and their two granddaughters. 

Happy 40th Anniversary, to my cousin Eddie and his wife Maureen! Enjoy your special day!