Arthur Middleton

Arthur Warner Middleton Born in San Francisco on May 21, 1923, passed away at his home in Woodside, California, on February 12, 2010 at the age of 86. Arthur, also known as "Middie," was a graduate of Lowell High School . A lifelong CAL Bears fan, he graduated from UC Berkeley, where he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. During World War II, he served overseas as a pilot with the U.S. Army Air Corps. Arthur lived in San Jose with his first wife, Joanne Kraemer Middleton, who preceded him in death in 1972. He worked for Western Plumbing Supply, then later had a successful career in commercial real estate. He moved to Los Altos Hills with his second wife, Marian Winters Middleton, who died in 1993. He reconnected with his childhood friend, Derith " Derry " Coonan Middleton in 1993. They married later that year and lived happily at their home in Woodside. Derry and Arthur lived across the street from one another on Green Street in San Francisco and had kept in touch with each other and fellow members of "The Green Street Gang." Arthur loved his family and friends. He was known for his constant intellectual curiosity, which led to a number of interests and hobbies. In the early 1950s, he and a group of San Jose friends started the "Honeysuckle Social and Investment Club," which sparked his interest for researching and investing in the stock market. He loved learning about birds, which recently included working with the California Bluebird Recovery Program and personally monitoring several birdhouses in Woodside. He also taught children to build birdhouses. Arthur''s fascination with birds started with his Boy Scout Troop 14 affiliation. He was proud of his Eagle Scout status. Arthur enjoyed his membership in the Sainte Claire Club in downtown San Jose , where he was once ranked #1 for billiards and played dominoes. More recently, he enjoyed playing dominoes with friends at the Menlo Country Club. He took great pleasure in his many travels and often used his sketching and water color painting talents to chronicle them. Arthur was a wonderful storyteller. He surprised several of his relatives and friends with stories about their lives and last year, with his daughter, Anne, wrote and self-published "Middie''s Memoirs." Arthur cared so much about people and often was the conduit for keeping in touch with his many friends and organizing reunions -- Lowell High School classmates, Beta fraternity brothers, Honeysucklers, and Troop 14 and Green Street Gang members. A sports enthusiast, he was on the swim teams at CAL and Lowell. He also enjoyed playing golf and tennis. Arthur is survived by his wife, Derry ; daughters, Anne Middleton, Patsy Sevison and Gail Tidwell; and grandchildren Kristiina Gagner and Travis Tidwell. Arthur is also survived by step-children Bruce Coonan, Kevin Coonan, Sarah Hart, Terry Coonan and Pres Winters; 11 step grandchildren and seven step great grandchildren. Preceding him in death were his parents Alex Whitten Middleton and Annie Squier Middleton; his brothers Billy Middleton and Jack Middleton, and his sister Barbara Egidio. Donations in Arthur''s memory can be made to HOPE Rehabilitation Services or Stanford Hospital . HOPE, an organization for which Arthur served as a board member for many years, assists people with developmental disabilities to live and participate in their communities. More recently, Arthur came to deeply appreciate Stanford Hospital , where he received excellent care. Plans for a private celebration of Arthur''s life are pending.