Judith Ortiz Cofer, a former faculty member in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, died Dec. 30. She was 64.
A memorial service will be held Jan. 27 at 3 p.m. in the Chapel followed by a reception in Demosthenian Hall.
A native of Hormiguerros, Puerto Rico, Ortiz Cofer was a retired Regents Professor of English and creative writing. A prolific literary writer in multiple genres, she received many awards for her writing and teaching including a Pulitzer Prize nomination for her novel The Line of the Sun and the O. Henry Prize for her story “A Latin Deli.”
“Judith Cofer was a highly intelligent and gifted human being who brought her love of family and her experience as a native born-Puerto Rican and longtime citizen of Georgia to bear in her poems, essays and fiction,” said Hugh Ruppersburg, professor emeritus of English.
Ortiz Cofer is survived by her husband, Charles John Cofer, daughter, grandson and family members in Louisville, Augusta, St. Simons, Washington, D.C., and West Palm Beach, Florida.