Peter Reese

Pete Reese, 72, of Mclean, Virginia, left this earth on November 22, 2021. He died at home surrounded by his family. Pete was born in Sacramento, California, on July 8, 1949. He was awarded the honor of Eagle Scout in 1964. He graduated from the University of California Berkeley with a Bachelor of Science degree from the Haas School of Business. He received his JD from American University Washington College of Law in May 1983.

Pete came to Washington, D.C. to work for the federal government. His career spanned almost 35 years, with most of his time spent as a tough contract negotiator at several agencies. He also strongly believed everyone should have a civic duty and served regularly as a volunteer for local political organizations and as an election poll watcher after retirement.

Pete had many passions, but most of all, he had a lifelong love of history and historical board games and was well known to his fellow gamers as one of the very best and hard to beat. One of the war gaming magazines at that time even wrote about him in 1980 after he won three major tournaments at Origins. With the advent of online gaming, Pete often acted as the tournament gamemaster for these historically based and complex games. Through gaming, he and his wife Sandy met and became friends with wonderful people from all over the United States and Europe. With the advent of grandchildren, he found himself playing video games with his young grandson Liam. In Pete’s many travels, he generally knew more than the tour guides at historical locations and his family learned that there was always a historical sight to visit and a history lesson when traveling with him.

Pete loved his alma mater and held a lifelong desire to see Cal in the Rose Bowl before he died. Whenever possible, he tried to catch a football game in Berkeley, and frequently attended alumni meetups in D.C. to watch a game with Sandy and his younger daughter Gail, also a Berkeley alum.

His love of soccer extended not only to watching his children and granddaughter play but also to supporting the DC United club team. He was a long-time member of the DC United supporters’ group the Screaming Eagles, volunteering at many of their tailgates and going on many road trips with them to away games. When traveling abroad, he and Sandy tried to catch soccer games of local teams much to the chagrin of hotel concierges who thought it was risky to do so. His response was to always support the home team wherever they went but he always rooted for the US if they were playing. He and Sandy were fortunate to see the USA Women play and win in the 2019 World Cup.

Pete adored his family and loved going to see any event in which they participated. He loved animals, especially dogs, and often volunteered to care for friends’ and neighbors’ dogs, relishing these beloved loaner dogs. He is survived by his wife of nearly 47 years and best friend Sandy, his children Stephanie and Gail (Eric), his grandchildren Autumn, Liam and Lenora, brother Rick (Tedi), cousin Kathy Stanley (Dale), and nephew Garrett Reese (Meghan). He will be missed greatly.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any gifts be made to the Lymphoma Research Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Share of McLean, or other charity of the giver’s choice

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