Roy Lester Riden's Obituary
Roy Lester Riden
Our precious Dad, Roy Lester Riden, 96, was born at home, with the help of a midwife, on January 31, 1921, in Tacoma, WA, and had lived here most of his life. He graduated to Heaven on May 8, 2017.
He and his beloved wife, Peggy (deceased 4/9/14) met while attending Stewart Jr. High, in Tacoma, and married when he was 19 and she was 16. They were married for 74 years and were totally devoted to each other. When she died, his heart followed her, and living became an extremely difficult task for him. He tried hard to stay strong, but she was everything to him ... nothing could compare to what they had together. In his later years, Roy had became legally blind, and he always said that Peggy was "his eyes". Their love story was a rare one.
Roy and Peggy were married on February 24, 1940, by a minister, in the Royal Neighbor's Hall, in Tacoma, followed by an overnight trip to Seattle in their Model T Ford, which had a flat tire that night, in the pouring down rain! Over the years, Roy and Peggy bought and fixed up 40 houses together ... they were a great team.
Roy proudly served in the United States Navy during WW II, as a Shipfitter.
Roy was a very kind, gentle, loving man, who enjoyed helping others. He also was an extremely hard worker, and had several jobs through the years. such as auto mechanic, furniture inspector, and shipfiiter. Two of the places he worked were Educator's Mfg. and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.
Roy and Peggy had 3 children, whom they loved very much. He was a wonderful husband, father, and grandfather. God blessed us with His best!
Roy was preceded in death by his beautiful wife, Peggy, but they are together now for all eternity, in Heaven! Roy was also preceded in death by his precious Mother, Marie Riden, who lived to be 102. She loved Jesus SO much, and we know she was part of his Heavenly Welcoming Committee! He was also preceded in death by his brother, Robert (Bob) Riden (wife Vivian), and his sister, Dorothy (Al) Biggs, as well as his father, Everett Riden. Roy's grandparents, Albert and Hilda Linder, were immigrants from Sweden, and were processed in through Seattle when Roy's Mother was 5 years old.
Roy is survived by his three children: Richard L.(Rocky) Riden (wife, Becky); daughter, Sally LaFayette; and daughter Susan (Sue) Norberg (husband, Neal, who has been a tremendous help and support to all of us); and by his many wonderful grandchildren, as well as great- and great-great. He also is survived by his wife, Peggy's sister, Donna Erickson Griffies (husband, Bill), and we are so grateful for her devotion to Roy and Peggy. She's been there with us every step of the way throughout our Dad's illness, as well as our Mom's. She brought anything they needed and has been such an encourager with her faithful visits. She took Dad for many lunches in the cafeteria at Cottesmore, and often shared her freshly-baked apple pies with him, which he absolutely loved! She's been a shoulder to cry on, as well as arms of comfort. She was like a daughter to Roy and Peggy, as they helped to raise her, and they were very close. And Donna's daughter, Robin Erickson, was very close to her Uncle Roy and Aunt Peggy, too, and they loved her dearly, as well. Peggy's sister, Sandra Coates (husband, Doug) had parties for Roy on his recent birthdays and were cheerleaders for both him and Peggy, as well. Peggy's other siblings have been very supportive to both of them, also: Dorothy Spane (husband Al); and Alex (Sonny) Hergert (wife, Nancy); along with many wonderful nieces and nephews, who all blessed both Roy & Peggy with their presence. Thank you all for your love, prayers and encouragement, along with your visits to Roy and Peggy.
Our deepest gratitude goes out to the Staff at Cottesmore of Life Care, in Gig Harbor. Thank you ALL for your hard work! We appreciate everything you did to care for our Dad, as well as your help to us! May God bless every one of you!
Roy and Peggy were patients of Dr. Bryce Betteridge (deceased), followed by Dr. Marse McNaughton, for over 50 years in all, and considered them as "family". They loved and appreciated them and their staff.
Our heartfelt thanks to Dr. Balprit Randhawa, along with his staff, who cared for Roy at Good Samaritan Hospital, in 2013. Because of your wisdom and perseverance, when things looked very bleak for Roy, and others had given up on him, your efforts saved his life and gave us four more years with our Dad! God bless you!
And a special thank you to Chaplain Dorothy Prybylski, whose love and ministry have been such a comfort. She baptized Roy & Peggy together during a stay at Good Samaritan Hospital, and she is right at the top of our blessings list.
And finally, thank you to the entire staff at the Franciscan Hospice House. You took such excellent care of our Dad (and our Mom, when she was there 3 years ago), to help ease their suffering near the end of their earthly lives. We will always be grateful for your efforts on their behalf. You are a stellar team! God bless you!
Our parents left us a Legacy of Love, and we so appreciate having had them as parents and grandparents, siblings, aunt, uncle, cousins and friends.
Roy wanted no services or viewing. Inurnment will be next to his beloved wife, at Mountain View Cemetery, Tacoma, WA.
In lieu of flowers, a donation to either:
Franciscan Hospice & Palliative Care, in honor of Roy Riden
2901 Bridgeport Way W.
University Place, WA 98466
or
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 91
2000 South Union Ave.
Tacoma, WA 98405
is suggested. Thank you!
2 Corinthians 5 : 1 5 For we know that when this tent we live in now is taken down ... when we die and leave these bodies ... we will have wonderful new bodies in heaven, homes that will be ours forevermore, made for us by God himself, and not byhuman hands. (TLB)
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