Obituary of Peter Crissman Weaver

PETER CRISSMAN WEAVER of Atlantic City, NJ passed away suddenly on Sunday, 12 August 2018, at the age of 78. With the exception of a few contemporary comments, this obituary was written by the deceased before his passing. Pete was born and raised in Western Pa. and never lost his western Pennsylvania accent developed while growing up in the Butler area. As a young man, he was active in the Hill UP Church, where he developed his love for all kinds of music by singing and playing the trumpet. Pete received a B.A. in Social Studies from Muskingum College, New Concord, Ohio and a M.A. in Education and Counseling from Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. During his early career, Pete worked mainly with youth service agencies, starting as a teacher and then transitioning into guidance counseling. He later became the first Executive Director of Aldersgate Youth Service Bureau in Willow Grove, Pa., followed by terms as the Executive Director at Big Brothers of Bucks County in Doylestown, Pa. and Executive Director from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mercer County. While at BBBS Mercer County, he was credited for starting the first school based mentor program in the national BBBS movement, eventually retiring from this position in 2005. Pete loved baseball and jazz. In 1961, on a dare, he placed an unsolicited phone call to his baseball idol, Willie Mays. During the conversation, he was brazen enough to tell Willie how to handle the Pirates' opposing pitcher that night. To which, Willie responded, "Kid, I think I know how to handle this pitcher." Pete never met a microphone he didn't love and MC'ED many social/business events, while trying to break-in the audience for the guest "stand up" comedian. His mission in life was to make people laugh at every possible opportunity. Pete especially liked some levity in grocery store checkout lines. While at Muskingum (1962), a school also attended by astronaut John Glenn, he organized a pre-emptive parade composed of fraternity brothers (Pete playing the part of Annie Glenn) before John Glenn was hailed by a throng of 50,000 people honoring his space flight. Pete was a frequent visitor of varied jazz venues and enjoyed challenging the extent of an artist's repertoire by requesting multiple classical jazz compositions. Pete spent his final hours in the enjoyment of his wife's company, at dinner, listening to jazz. He failed as they walked hand-in-hand from that night's venue. Pete is survived by Deedie Dobarro Weaver, his loving wife; his sister, Lorma Hill of Zelionople, Pennsylvania; his niece Sally Schoen and partner, Luanne Diffin, of Los Angeles, California; and his nephew Doug Schoen and wife, Kelly, currently living in Lausanne, Switzerland and their three children: Mark, Nate, and Sadie. Also, surviving Pete are his sister-in-law, Margaret Varani; his brother-in-law, Joe Dobarro; and his nephew, Tony Dobarro. Peter's sister, Barbara Schoen, passed in 2014. Relatives and friends are invited to Memorial Services for Peter Weaver at 12Noon Saturday, August 18, 2018 at the Gormley Funeral Home LLC 2706 Atlantic Avenue, Atlantic City. Friends may call on the family from 10:00am until services. Pete requests that all contributions be sent to: Big Brothers Big Sisters of Atlantic and Cape May Counties, 450 Tilton Road, Suite 214, Northfield, New Jersey 08225.