Robert Coles III moved with his parents, Stella and Robert Coles, Jr., to South Wayne School, prior to graduating from West High School in 1965. Also, graduating from West
was his sister, Juliet, Class of 1959; his brother Llewellyn, “Lew”, Class of 1963; and his sister Caroline, “Buttons”, Class of 1970. His youngest sister, Deborah, “Debbie” graduated from Central High School.
After graduation, Robert worked at Westinghouse Electric Corporation until 1967, when he joined the United States Army. He served in the Vietnam War: 3rd Squadron, 5th
Armored Calvary, 9th Infantry Division from 1967-1968. Upon leaving the Army, he returned to Westinghouse Electric Corporation where he worked until 1975. At that time,
he became a member of the first recruit class of the Columbus Ohio Division of Fire following the Dozier v Chupka racial discrimination case ruling. He ranked number one on the minority list and number four on the combined list. The members of the recruit class elected him class spokesman.
Following his recruitment class, Robert was assigned to Engine 25 (Port Columbus), 3 Unit for two years. He was then assigned as a Firefighter to Engine 9 (West 3rd Ave.), 3 Unit
for three years followed by being assigned as a Firefighter to Engine 17, 3 Unit, for five years. As a Firefighter, he obtained EMT-Basic and Technical Rescue Certifications. He was then assigned as a Lieutenant to Engine 17, 3 Unit for six years. For two years, Robert was a Fire Station Captain at Station 31, E- 2 Unit. He was a Fire Station Captain at Station 8, Ladder 8, 1 Unit for 3 years. During early 1999, he was an Unassigned Battalion Chief in the Emergency Services Bureau. From 1999-2002, Robert was Battalion Chief in the Fire Prevention Bureau, as well as Assistant Bureau Head. For two years, 2002-2003, he was Deputy Chief of EMS Training. As a Deputy Chief, Robert served as the EMS Billing Project Manager and Contract Manager from 2003 through 2007. He served on the Entry Level Firefighter Hiring Committee and the
Uniformed Personnel Promotional Testing Committee as Chief Pettus’ representative concerning diversity. He also chaired the Fire Chief’s Gala Committee for Fire Chief Ned Pettus, Jr.’s appointment and reappointment celebrations. He served as an
Accreditation Manager for the division’s successful initial international accreditation and reaccreditation projects for eight years.
At the time of his retirement on April 19, 2011, Robert was Deputy Chief of Special Operations, which managed the Emergency Medical Services, the Technical Rescue Program, the Bomb Squad, the Hazmat Unit, the Tactical EMS Unit, and the Dive and Rescue Team. He had been in this position since 2005.
Robert has held memberships in the: International Fire Chiefs Association (IFCA), Ohio Fire Chiefs Association, Inc., International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters (IABPFF), and the Columbus African American Firefighters Association (CAFFA). In this organization, he served as the CAFFA 1st Vice-President from 1992-1994. During this time period, he won a racial discrimination complaint filed with the State of Ohio Attorney General’s Office against the Columbus Fire Chief for routinely wrongfully denying special duty leave requests from CAAFA members who had requested the leave to attend regional and national IABPFF conferences. The Fire Chief had made the claim that attending the conferences was only a benefit to the individual, not the Division; despite the fact that classes on fire ground strategy and tactics, leadership, fire science, etc. are being incorporated in the conferences. At the same time, the Fire Chief had routinely granted special duty leave for division personnel to attend similarly structured conferences held by the IAFF, IFCA, NFPA, etc. Robert was also a member of the Cross and Shield organization, which was active prior to 1975 (when he became a firefighter) and for a short time afterwards. It was a predecessor organization to CAFFA and Police Officers for Equal Rights.
Robert has received several awards during his career as a Firefighter. In 2002, he received the CFD Distinguished Service Award for intervening on a suicide attempt and in 2007 he received the CFD Fire Chief’s Award for managing the Fire Division Accreditation, as well as the City Council Resolution for managing Fire Division Accreditation. In 2024 he received the CFD Award of Excellence for his contribution made to the compilation and publication of the Columbus Division of Fire 200 Year History Book.
In addition, Robert earned a Bachelor of Science in Public Administration in 1996, graduating, Summa Cum Laude. In 2002, he completed the Leadership Columbus Program, “which is a dynamic, experiential journey that equips people to lead from where they are, turning passion and knowledge into real-world impact where it matters most”. In 2011, he attended Columbus State Community College where he received his Paralegal Certificate.
As for his family, Robert’s three children are all West High School graduates. His daughter, Tiffany, graduated in 1988; his son, Robert IV in 1990; and his daughter, Tonya, in 1993. Their mother, the late Pamela Good Coles, also graduated from West in 1964.
He and Linda Williams Coles, West Class of 1970, have been married for 27 years. Both are retirees. Linda retired from AT&T and Robert from Columbus Ohio Division of Fire. They have delivered a “Meal on Wheels” route on Mondays for the last nine years. In addition, Robert served as a Board Chair of the Jacob J. Ashburn Jr. Youth Center from 2006 to 2011. Robert and Linda enjoy traveling, especially to their annual winter vacations in Jamaica.
Earl “Wimpy” Potts (deceased), Class of 1951, nominated Robert. Deborah Coles Stinson, Robert’s sister, will introduce him.
