Colleagues, friends remember Coston

The Washougal City Council honored the legacy of former mayor Molly Coston, who died on Nov. 18 at 77, at its Dec. 1 meeting.
Coston served as a Washougal city councilor from 2005-11, mayor from 2018 to 2021, and city councilor from 2022 until her death. Former Camas mayor Nan Henriksen told the Post-Record that Coston was “a magnificent human being who will be sorely missed by me and so many others.”
“It is so difficult to articulate what the loss of Molly means to me and our East County community,” she said. “I have been reading online an amazing number of people who are struggling with Molly’s loss. They speak of how approachable she was, how kind and good she was to them, how much they enjoyed talking with her because they felt better after the encounter. I was lucky enough to be her close friend for many years and I hope all those people know the person she showed you was her genuine and caring self. She delighted in attending community events and talking with you. She really cared about you.”
Former Washougal councilor Joyce Lindsay told the Post-Record that Coston was “intelligent, experienced, and unfailingly kind.”
“Everyone felt safe with her. Everyone felt seen and respected by her,” she said. “She listened before she spoke. She paid attention to people and to the details that mattered. When she acted, she did so with a thoughtful balance that always aimed to serve the whole community. She was fair, trustworthy, and steady. She carried herself with grace, and when she spoke, people listened.
“Molly lived an interesting and eclectic life, and her stories reflected that. She had a free spirit, but she also carried a strong sense of responsibility. When she committed to something, she gave it her full effort and her full heart. Molly made our community better. She helped make it kinder, more thoughtful, and more beautiful. Those of us who knew her will carry her influence with us for a long time.”