Richard Pilling - Glen's Tribute

I am Richard’s younger brother and although we grew up in a large family, we had our own special relationship.

In our early years, we would spend many hours unsupervised, playing together as friends in a prairie gulley behind our home, investigating the pond, snaring gofers with string, digging caves in dirt hill side, having dirt lump fights, gathering tumble weeds and making forts out of them, flying kites, exploding firecrackers, launching model rockets, experimenting with matches and gunpowder from Dad’s shot gun shells.

When we started school, our Dad bought property at Shuswap Lake. We couldn`t wait to get out to the cabins. Richard and I spent summers barefoot in the forest, making spears from bracken fern, making bows and arrows from maple, seeking and destroying wasp’s nests, and generally exploring the bay. Richard enjoyed fishing, canoeing, sailing, swimming, diving for rocks, rock walking, and cliff diving.

Richard was a Queen’s scout. His sash was full of merit badges. He loved camping, building fires, roasting wieners and marshmallows. He was a stalwart leader who would defend the weakest in the troop without question.

Our father loved many competitive sports and recreational sports. He taught them to us as early as he could. Richard excelled at leg wrestling (I never beat him that I can remember), target shooting, gopher hunting, and riding horses. Richard was an accomplished horseman who rode with a long rein in total command of the horse. When Richard was riding, he was as happy as I can remember.

Whether playing at recess in elementary school, pick-up games in Jr. High School or club basketball; it paid to have Richard on your side. He was a force, a first pick and starter. He tried to be gentle with us regular sized guys; however, his tackle or foul was just a little harder if he didn’t think you were playing fair.

He played school sports a couple of years ahead of me so I never got to play on his school team but when I started Jr. High School, the athletic director of the school called me into his office and asked if I was going to play any sports. I said, “Yes!” He said, “I am expecting a lot from you, you have some pretty big shoes to fill.”

Richard competed in high school in football, basketball and track and field. He played football with the Dinosaurs Football Club at University of Calgary.

At school, Richard had as much if not more fun playing in the band than being on the sports teams. He had a few close loyal friends and neighbours, team mates, and fellow Mormon boys. His father taught him to stand true to LDS principles and he did. That often put Richard in conflict with the ``in`` group who often bullied and ostracised Richard. He usually had a long fuse and took the abuse in stride. However under that long fuse was a capacity to build potential energy that when ignited was awe-inspiring. By the time he attended Queen Elizabeth Jr. High, our school had more of a reputation for gangs and fights than scholastics and sport. When he was in grade 8 or 9, two of the toughest gang leaders in school were badgering Richard after their friends had him cornered in the school yard. One started to kick, kicking being outside the boundaries of fair play to Richard, he exploded. He threw his antagonist to the ground, picked up the other ring leader over his head and dropped him on the ground. He felt bad about having to do that but he would always give his characteristic laugh when he was reminded that the other guy thought that dropping him was outside the boundaries of fair play.

As most brothers do, we grew apart as we grew up and went separate ways. In our adult life, we saw each other less frequently; most times we saw each other for short meetings such as weddings and funerals. I cannot explain why it happened but a wall developed between us that I wish we could have resolved. The word love was never spoken between us but that does not mean we did not love each other. Even though we had our differences lately, I don’t think it ever affected the bond we formed early in our lives. Goodbye my big brother.

- Glen Pilling