Peter “Scott” Ridley (75) of Sammamish, Washington passed away at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, Washington on June 21, 2022 due to complications from Covid-19. Just like he dealt with all experiences in life, Scott managed his illness with courage and strength, and wanted to spend as much time with his loved ones as possible. Despite dealing with a lot of pain, Scott stayed strong and made all his own decisions right up until the end.

During his final days, he was surrounded by four of his daughters, who he adored more than anything else in the world. He got to enjoy all of the food he asked for including Dick’s cheeseburgers, oysters, Ivar’s fish and chips, loads of strawberry milkshakes and ice-cream, as well as his favorite “cake” - Boston cream pie. He even got to get a good whiff of his favorite beer! The night before he passed, his nurse asked him how he felt after a long day of hard conversations. His reply was simply, “peaceful”.

Scott was born in Washington, DC to Robert and Gertrude Ridley. He was the oldest of 6 children – 3 girls and 3 boys. Early on, they moved to Seattle, Washington. As a teenager, he loved creating mischief with friends. He also talked fondly of the countless hours he spent at his grandparent’s flower shop assembling model cars and spending time with them. Out of this grew his love for cars, Indy cars in particular, along with his love for Mariner’s Baseball. He was a passionate aficionado of collectibles from both sports. In 1999, his favorite Indy car racer, Greg Moore, passed away in a tragic accident and he couldn’t stand to watch racing for a decade until Tony Kanaan caught his eye and reignited his love for the sport.

After leaving high school, he had a short stint working for the Washington State Patrol and then worked as a cable lineman. He had 4 daughters from his first marriage – Tamara, Trisha, Tiffany and Traci. He gained 3 more daughters during his third marriage that he raised as his own until his final day – Anita, Cristina, and Mary. He took a fall from a telephone pole that broke his back and left him unable to work any longer. Soon after that he had his youngest daughter, Caryn, and was able to focus on raising her and delve into his hobbies.

Scott never knew a stranger and always wore a smile. He would strike up a conversation with anyone, anywhere and initiated some of his dearest friendships on walking trails, grocery stores, and even just calling in to various auto parts stores to inquire about parts for his most prized possession – his 1985 VW Scirocco. He loved to use his car as a talking point and would get excited when someone would comment on it. During his six week long stay at Swedish Medical Center, he won the hearts of many of his nurses who doted on him and who his family will be forever grateful to.

Scott was funny and easy going, always letting his girls off easy when they “got in trouble”. He hilariously quoted Abbott and Costello until the very end… ”Who’s on first?” Scott was a lover of good food, in particular cheeseburgers and seafood and developed a serious sweet tooth in his later years. He enjoyed cooking as much as he could, always wanting to try new recipes and truly enjoyed a good beer.

Scott had a devoted love for animals and deeply cherished his pets. He loved walking and getting outdoors in any season with his dogs throughout the years. He never missed a Perseids meteor shower and loved watching the Blue Angels perform. Scott loved to explore new places and took the opportunity to travel whenever he could. He loved camping at places like Kalaloch, Lake Kachess, and Denny Creek. He enjoyed reading, especially Sci-Fi and mysteries and collected books. His favorite was anything by Dean Koontz. Scott loved music his entire life, especially ELVIS! He was a true fan boy! He also loved ELO, the Beatles, Paul McCartney, Alan Parsons, and more. He had an extensive vinyl record collection and CDs and loved to play it as loud as he could. He had recently even taken up learning how to play the guitar.

What Scott took the most pride and joy in was being a Papa to his many grandchildren, from the adult “kids” to the little ones. He loved his grandchildren more than anything and wanted them to know how proud he was of each and every one of them. Scott never failed to tell them he loved them and made sure they knew it was unconditional.

Scott is predeceased by his loving grandparents: Earle and Florence Fonda; his sister Ann; his mother Gertrude and father Robert; his dogs Tasha and Chevy; his cats Junior and Allie.

He is survived by his eight daughters and their families, Tamara Wood and daughters Alissa Williams and Taylor Parrish, Trisha (Jeff) Ferris and their children Ian, Katie, Bailee, Samantha, and Ryan, Tiffany (Chuck) Coragiulo, Traci Gradwohl and sons Joshua and Jarron, Anita Kolendar (Jess Rekdahl) and sons Tristan and Gaige, Cristina (Thomas) Holmes and their children Elijah, Dylynn and Mia, Mary (Shaun) Gilson and their children Dawson, Adelyn, Aiden, Emma and Lillian, Caryn (Derek) McAferty and their daughters Rhylie and Ella; his brothers Dave and Barney (Luth) niece Sachi; his sister Susan, niece Heather; his sister Michelle; nephew Greg; as well as extended family and an abundance of friends.

A celebration of life will be held on October 29, 2022 with details to come. Remembrances in Scott’s honor may be made to the animal charity of the giver’s choice.

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