1918 - Dec 16, 2015
Wallace “Wally" Willis, who covered the early days of the San Francisco
49ers and later became the Tribune's financial editor, died Dec. 16,
2015 in Hughson, CA. He was 98.
A
native of Wichita, KS, Willis and his family moved to California in
1929 and settled in Richmond. He graduated from Richmond High and
started his newspaper career there as a stringer for the Richmond
Independent. He went on to work full-time at the Independent before
moving to the news staff of the Tribune in 1941.
After service in the Navy in World War II, Willis returned to the Tribune and joined the sports department in 1948.
Although
the 49ers were formed in 1946 as part of the All-America Football
Conference, the Tribune didn't cover them on a regular basis until 1948,
and Willis was given that assignment -- a beat he had through 1960. During
his time in sports, Willis also worked games of the Oakland Oaks of the
Pacific Coast League and later the San Francisco Giants. He also
covered many sports at UC Berkeley, including the 1959 NCAA basketball
championship; sports at Stanford, St. Mary’s, USF and San Jose State;
and many amateur events, including national and international track and
swimming meets.
In
1962, Willis moved out of the sports department to become the Tribune's
financial editor. He remained in that position until 1967 when he moved
to Hawaii to become financial editor of the Honolulu Advertiser. Willis
went from there to Amfac, Inc., in 1968. At the time, Amfac, a land
developer, was Hawaii's largest company, and Willis was named its public
relations director. He later became senior vice president and
administrative assistant to the chairman and CEO.
Willis retired in 1979 and moved to Santa Rosa, CA. He later resided in Modesto.
During
his tenure at the Tribune, Willis won industry awards for his 49ers
coverage and also for the development of the paper's financial coverage.
In his later years, he maintained a keen mind and never forgot his friends and former colleagues.
"He
kept in touch right up to the end," said former Tribune political
editor Gayle Montgomery. " Just a couple of weeks ago, I received an
envelope from him filled with clippings from the Modesto Bee telling
about a tornado that hit my little home town of Denair in Stanislaus
County. He never forgot anything, I guess."
Willis
and his wife, Peg, were married almost 65 years. She died in 2006. He
is survived by son Gregory of Pinole, CA; four granddaughters, and four
great-granddaughters. He is the son of the late Samuel G. and Clara E.
(Peden) Willis and father of the late David Willis of Modesto.
At
his request there will be no services. Interment will be at Santa Rosa
Memorial Park. Memorial contributions may be made to the Shriners
Hospital for Children, 2425 Stockton Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95817 or a
favorite charity.
No comments:
Post a Comment