The Houlihan Grandchildren Remember 10K Runs, Scary Masks, and Their Best Customer

Betsy's daughter and Pete's stepdaughter, Myla Houlihan, has three daughters Pete adored. They are pictured with him at the beach, above. Below, they share some of their favorite memories about their experiences with him. 

One of my favorite memories of Pete was when he came to Boulder and ran the Bolder Boulder 10K race with me when I was 8 years old. He ran with me the entire way, but he let me set the pace, always staying just a few steps behind. We ran into the stadium together, although he let me cross the finish line first and we celebrated together on Memorial Day!   -Emily Houlihan, 22

One of my favorite memories of Pete is jumping out of the bushes at the Coronado house to "scare" him as he came home from work. My sisters and I were wearing animal masks that we got at the San Diego Zoo earlier that day. I remember watching for his car when he got home,  racing out with my monkey mask, and then waiting quietly behind the bushes, trying not to giggle. In retrospect, he may have heard or seen us behind the bushes that day, yet he still walked purposefully up the path and then dropped his bags and feigned surprise as we excitedly jumped out from our hiding spots. Pete was always a willing participant in our playful games, and it always ended with a good laugh.   -Erin Houlihan, 20

One of my favorite memories of Pete and Grandma was when we set up a pretend "store" in their back office.  After surveying their pantry, we made a detailed list with menu items and prices, and then opened the window to the patio to serve our "customers". Pete was always our most loyal customer — as soon as he got home from work, he would rush out to the patio and order some lemonade and brownies and pay with change. He was very complimentary and always expressed his gratitude, eagerly asking when the store would be open next. 

- Meg Houlihan, 17

Brothers: 1941 and 2014

When they weren't turning furniture into boats, Bill and Pete Riddle looked cherubic. A Chicago newspaper featured the boys in 1941; the caption that appeared is retyped below. 

These little boys are the sons of Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Riddle. The older boy is William, commonly known as "Billy," and the younger is Emmons, who is called "Petey." Both have blond hair and brown eyes. Five-year-old Billy's greatest joy is ice boating on Fox Lake, and he and Petey, who will be 3 years old April 2, on days when they must stay indoors, upset the house by turning all the furniture into boats and playing they are sailing on the ice. Billy likes to sail on the lake and both he and Petey get a thrill out of watching their Daddy fly an airplane. They have an older brother, Hugh, who will be 9 on June 1. 

Seventy-three years later, during a 2014 visit in Coronado, photographer and family member Ken Corr captured the two brothers  — who had lost Hugh 18 years earlier — in a quiet moment at the beach. Said Corr: "I had to work on [the picture] a bit to remove various extraneous visual distractions that were in the original image in order to bring into focus the two brothers, deep in conversation with each other — most likely their last one-on-one in person interaction."

It was, indeed.

Celebration of Life: New Venue and Time

Please join us for Pete's Celebration of Life!

Due to Pete's popularity and multifaceted life as family man, retired judge, Navy Captain, swimmer, and runner, his family decided to alter the venue to welcome the many people who meant so much to him. 

When: 11 a.m. on Sunday, April 12, 2015

Where: Coronado Island Marriott Resort
                 Skyline Terrace
                 2000 Second St., Coronado, CA 92118
                 (619) 435-3000

Details: Look for the white tent adjacent to the bay, aptly titled "Pete Riddle's Celebration of Life."


Parking: Complimentary self-parking at the resort. You will need to take a ticket from the machine to enter the hotel property. No need to bring that ticket into Pete's event; leave it in your car in a safe place. Upon check-in, you will receive a separate, validated card — a green "chaser" — to use when you exit. In other words, when you leave, you will insert your original ticket into the automated system, followed by the validated ticket you received at the event, for a seamless departure. 

What to Bring: Yourselves and your stories of Pete!  

Lane 2 Original

Pete's recreational pursuits meant alarm clocks buzzing at 4 a.m. most mornings, but he relished his tarp duties at "0-dark-thirty." Swimming, running, and weightlifting brought him to the La Jolla campus at least five days per week. More important than the training, however, was the sense of community he enjoyed there with his wife, Betsy Jordan, and his comrades in lycra. 

Here's a note Ronald "Sickie" Marcikic, Director and Head Coach of UCSD Masters Sports, sent to his athletes:

It is with great sadness that I have to let you know of the passing of a close friend, fellow swimmer (breaststroker exactly, although he might not always admit it), Lane 2 original, Navy SEAL, and the nicest person I've ever met...Pete Riddle. 

Pete was in a care facility on Coronado with Lewy body dementia. His health was declining over the past months, but he maintained a bright demeanor and delicate hold on life with his wife, Betsy, through the entire ordeal. I have known Pete for over 32 years. His sly take on life as a lawyer and judge was both personable and endearing. He always spoke kindly of everyone he met, and was always the first to offer his support to anyone in need.

***

In 2004 while in their mid-60s, Pete and Betsy completed the Maui Channel Swim — SOLO. Their 10-mile journey from Lanai to Maui is chronicled below by fellow channel swimmer Peggy Leong:

And just because they didn't see this guy doesn't mean he wasn't there! (Note: Not considered a comrade in lycra.)

The Judge

Pete Riddle served on the California Superior Court for the County of San Diego from 1987 through 2000. His assignments included Probate, Civil Litigation, Juvenile Delinquency, and Juvenile Dependency. He derived his greatest satisfaction from his work on cases that helped neglected and abused children.

The following are notes from attorneys who posted on a San Diego estate planning list serve about their courtroom experiences with Pete:

Judge Peter Riddle was our Probate Judge in the 80s and early 90s, and a colleague before that. He was a class act in judicial temperament and decision-making, as well as a friend and mentor to everyone. For those of you who never had the chance to know him or appear before him in court, you truly missed an excellent judge and person.  - Daniel B. Crabtree 

Absolutely a great guy and colleague. As funny and bright as he was tall!    - Dick Thorn

I agree. I had a trial in front of him, and he was always a gentleman.  - Cheryl Edwards Tannenberg

The best - hands down!  - Daniel F. Morrin, Esq.

Pete's death is sad news indeed. He had the perfect judicial temperament and was funny to boot. We were lucky to have known him.   - Tom Henry

I did a jury trial before him when will contests were jury trials. One of my favorite judges ever. - Scott Cole

He was remarkably good.  The first judge I ever appeared before, and a class act.  - Ricky Maveety

Sad news.  A great gentleman.  - Richard McCue

Very sad news indeed.  Pete was a great guy.  He was a big man (6'5" or so) and had been a Navy SEAL in his younger days.  As a lawyer and judge, he was careful and studious and he was a very good friend.  We are lessened by his loss.  - Jack G. Charney

Go Bulldogs!

Pete played tight end for the Yale football team through the 1959 season. Here's a recollection from classmate and teammate Alvin Puryear, Ph.D.:

Since Pete played end and I was a tackle, we were side-by-side on both offense and defense, in practices and in games.  Thus we were together for several hours a day from September through November. 

When Yale had the football, the tackles called the blocking assignments at the line of scrimmage for each play.  For the tackles and ends, a "Don" call meant that the tackle and end executed a double-team block; for a "Charlie" call, the tackle and end executed a cross-block, etc.  

The coaches would provide these calls for each week's opponent.On several occasions during games, Pete and I would confer quickly (in seconds, not minutes) in the huddle before the next play, and change the calls provided by the coaches.  On reflection, only Yale athletes could pull off that feat! 

From left to right in 1959: Pete Riddle, Art LaVallie, Dick Winkler, and Harry Olivar in the coffee table book A Bowl Full of Memories: 100 Years of Football at the Yale Bowl

Classmate Barry Schaller, a retired Connecticut Supreme Court Justice who teaches at Yale Law School, also remembered Pete's humility, despite his BMOC (Big Man on Campus) status:

Our classmates remember his effort and courage on the football field (a fact that he always modestly played down -- by saying that his was all effort and no skill -- but I doubt that). He was much admired and a big star. Of course, his Navy [SEAL] days brought more admiration...and then his work with juveniles. He was always so modest, unassuming, a good listener, always engaged in what others were saying....

After Pete retired, I learned that he would go to -- was it a children's hospital? -- and sit down to play with and talk with the children. Another wonderful portrait of his generous spirit, playful personality, and good heart. 

The Whiting Grandchildren Remember Snowballs, Forts, and "Tricky" Moves

The evening ritual with Matthew, Samantha, Kyle, and Tyler

My favorite memory with grandad is throwing a baseball with my Micheal Young signed baseball glove. He would always throw the ball behind his back and say "Grandad is very tricky." We would laugh and play catch for a long time.                 -Samantha Whiting, 12

With Samantha, 2007

My favorite memory with Grandad is playing a game called "pickle" in the front yard. It is a baseball game where we would throw the baseball back and forth trying to tag the runner out. These games would last a very long time and we would play every single time we visited. Grandad would always do some tricky move and then say "Remember, Grandad is very tricky" (this was his most famous quote). We shared lots of laughs and had a lot of fun playing in the front yard. This is one of the most memorable experiences I had with Grandad and something I'll never forget.        -Tyler Whiting, 17

 

Matthew, Chris Nichols, Tyler, Kyle, and Samantha (showing them who's boss), 2014

I will never forget the time when Grandad visited us over Christmas and it snowed. We had a huge snowball fight and he built forts for all of us. His primary concern in the midst of all the throwing and running was of course our safety. He truly knew how to make any situation enjoyable and had a genuine care for our well-being.     - Matthew Whiting, 17

 

With Matthew, 2006

One of the best memories I had of Grandad was constantly playing "pickle" with him outside. Whether it was the park, the beach, or just outside of the house, we would always have such a fun time throwing baseballs around and running back and forth between the two bases. This is where he first used the phrase, "Grandad is always VERY tricky," as he would try to trick us by pretending to throw the baseball. All of us loved it when he did this, and he made it his catchphrase whenever we were with him. This is just one of the many memories that the best grandad in the world gave us, and I will miss him so much.  -Kyle Whiting, 15

 

With Kyle, 2014