Gloria Peters
Bernie Badilla was my dad. Well, actually he was my step-dad. He was the only dad I had ever known. I have always called him "Dad". I was too young to have known he wasn't. I was told that fact after I became an adult. It completely devastated me. I was the only child he had raised. My name is Gloria Badilla.
My dad served in the Army. After the war, he served as a Patrolman for the Arizona Highway Patrol. A couple of years later he became a Deputy with the Pima County Sheriff's Department, Tucson, Arizona serving under Sheriff Burr from the late 1940's to his retirement in the early 1980's. Under the GI bill, my dad had his primary home built at 414 E. 32nd Street, Tucson, Arizona. He finished building it in 1954, the year I was born.
His closest friends were Maria Luisa Carrillo, whom I referred as aunt Mary Lou and was my Godmother. She was married and window to Robert Carrillo, a great-grandson of Tucson's founder, Leopoldo Carrillo. A few buildings around Tucson are named in honor of that family. Leo Carrillo, who owned an old fashioned drug store with a soda fountain. The soda fountain fascinated me and kept me occupied while my dad visited with Uncle Leo.
His dearest relative was his sister, Josephine (Badilla) Ross. Her husband, Pete Ross, owned a Pet Feed Store in downtown Tucson, near Ronstadt's Hardware Store on the same street. The Ronstadt's had a famous relative, Linda Ronstadt, who was a famous singer from the late 1960's to late 1980's.
My dad's favorite hobby was flying. He owned two Cessna's. He began teaching me to fly when I was eleven years old. By the time I was 13, I was co-piloting with him on flights to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Texas, and to visit relatives in Hermosillo. My dad often used his flying skills to conduct aerial search and rescue in his official capacity
We spent our Easter Vacations at Keno Bay, Sonora at his family's vacation home.
My dad passed away from a heart attack in August mid-1990's. He just had his anniversary. I was thinking of him and found this page. My dad was a remarkable man. I loved him.
My dad served in the Army. After the war, he served as a Patrolman for the Arizona Highway Patrol. A couple of years later he became a Deputy with the Pima County Sheriff's Department, Tucson, Arizona serving under Sheriff Burr from the late 1940's to his retirement in the early 1980's. Under the GI bill, my dad had his primary home built at 414 E. 32nd Street, Tucson, Arizona. He finished building it in 1954, the year I was born.
His closest friends were Maria Luisa Carrillo, whom I referred as aunt Mary Lou and was my Godmother. She was married and window to Robert Carrillo, a great-grandson of Tucson's founder, Leopoldo Carrillo. A few buildings around Tucson are named in honor of that family. Leo Carrillo, who owned an old fashioned drug store with a soda fountain. The soda fountain fascinated me and kept me occupied while my dad visited with Uncle Leo.
His dearest relative was his sister, Josephine (Badilla) Ross. Her husband, Pete Ross, owned a Pet Feed Store in downtown Tucson, near Ronstadt's Hardware Store on the same street. The Ronstadt's had a famous relative, Linda Ronstadt, who was a famous singer from the late 1960's to late 1980's.
My dad's favorite hobby was flying. He owned two Cessna's. He began teaching me to fly when I was eleven years old. By the time I was 13, I was co-piloting with him on flights to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Texas, and to visit relatives in Hermosillo. My dad often used his flying skills to conduct aerial search and rescue in his official capacity
We spent our Easter Vacations at Keno Bay, Sonora at his family's vacation home.
My dad passed away from a heart attack in August mid-1990's. He just had his anniversary. I was thinking of him and found this page. My dad was a remarkable man. I loved him.
