Richard Leroy "Dickie" Little

November 16, 1947 - September 3, 2009 On a warm summer day, Richard Leroy Little went home to glory. These are his words that he made sure to tell his daughter he wanted in his obituary. Richard wore many hats and filled many roles some of which were a father, a brother, a son. To celebrate someone's life we must first understand how they lived. "Dickie" was born in the middle of a heat wave that lasted more than 80 days in Mercer County Pennsylvania in 1947, so much so that the standing record was set and still holds true for the hottest November on record, a whopping 93 degrees. Maybe this was indicative of what was to come, Dad always loved the heat. Dickie moved to the desert in 1958 when he was ten years old and attended the local schools Katherine Finchy, Nellie Coffman, and finally in 1965, graduated Palm Springs High School. Dad continued his education at College of the Desert receiving his AA degree in business management in 1972. In between high school and College in the fall of 1965 dad enlisted in the United States Army, mostly because he had a fear of being drafted. Be that as it may Dad confronted this fear head on and embraced his time as a soldier. Buck Sgt. Little spent half of his time in Korea where he fondly remembered "they gave me a rifle and a nightstick" and taught me how to sing "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" while on patrol. Dad's time in the Army was remembered by events that shaped the world, The Pueblo was hijacked and dad participated in two attempts to retake this infamous ship. Dad returned to Ft. Meyer, Virginia in 1968, and finished his four years in the Army in the winter of 1969. Dad was married to Mary Serena Sweet on September 30, 1972. Dad worked for The Desert Sun newspaper for almost two decades. In 1994 Dad was afflicted with some medical problems that left him bed ridden and paralyzed. Through constant prayer and Christ like love by his family, scores of doctors and his especially his conservator and the unending willingness to carry on with the good fight, Dad learned to read again, enjoy the same TV shows and musicals and to sit and to participate. Dad was an active member of the family over the past 15 years, enjoying visits with his kids and extended family. Dad faced a hard battle when diagnosed with Leukemia but carried on stoically enjoying every moment and blessing us all as well as he could. Six short weeks later, he died while resting comfortably attended by his youngest sweet pea and his son-in-law. My dad left us last Thursday but we will never be left alone without something we learned from him or because of him. Dad exemplified in these last years a willingness to love like no other. Richard entered a better place loved by many leaving an immeasurably large vacancy in our hearts that can only be filled by time and a pain that can only be reconciled by our faith in God. Dad had five children that survive him, Jason, Kristin (Rick), Stephen (Katie), Christopher (Ashley) and Joanna. Dad is further survived by his five grandchildren, Elijah, Briana, Ethan, Clayton and Cailyn; his Aunt Mae; his step mom, Dorothy who raised and loved him his whole life; his sisters, Ginger, Melody, Pamela and Deborah; and his brother, Donald. Dickie was preceded in death by his father, Donald Leroy Little (1917-2000) and his mother he never knew, Helen Grace McCall (1923-1949). Dad will be painfully missed in this world by many others whose lives he touched or inspired. A Funeral Mass will be held at Sacred Heart Church in Palm Desert, Calif. on Thursday, September 10, at 2:00 PM. The family suggests donations in lieu of flowers to the YMCA of the Desert.