Peter D. Villa

 

 

March 24, 1938 - May 29, 2021

 

Resident of Brentwood, CA

Peter D. Villa, 83, passed away May 29 at home in Brentwood.

He was born to Henry Salvatore Villa and Irene Villa in Oakland and was raised in Albany. In 1949 they moved to Lafayette where he graduated from Acalanes High School in 1956 and then attended Diablo Valley Jr. College. He was married in Palm Springs in 1993 to Louise. He was a resident in Danville for 20 years before moving with Louise to Summerset in Brentwood in 1999.
Peter was preceded in death by his loving wife, Louise Villa "cara mia, my darling, my sweetheart"; and is survived by his grand niece, Tiffany Billy and her husband Charles Billy of Discovery Bay, great great nephew Dakota Winters, and good friend, Barbara Peasley of Pacific Grove.
He was predeceased by his father Henry Salvatore who was an Italian immigrant, mother Irene Villa, and sister Rosemary Burnell.
Pete began his career as an employee of the Oakland Tribune in the Radio/Television Department and then spent a majority of his career in the financing and banking industry. His bank career included Wells Fargo, United California Bank and California Canadian Bank. In 1971 he joined Transamerica Title Insurance and was promoted to vice president and county manager in 1973. He co-founded Financial Title in 1988, with his good friend Geoff Disch, where he served as president and C.E.O and later chairman of the board until his retirement in 1994.
Peter was affiliated and active in many groups. As founder of "The Family Group" of independent title companies in Northern California, he served as president for five years. He served two 2 year terms on the board of Builders Industry Association (BIA). He was a 20 year member, past president and honorary Paul Harris Fellow of the Danville Rotary Club and served as president in 1984/85. During his presidency, Danville Rotary sponsored the San Ramon Rotary Club, enabling them to get their charter. Peter coached the legendary San Ramon Valley Thunderbirds Pop Warner football team for 13 years, from 1960-73. During this time, they won five conference championships from 1968-73. The Danville Rotary Club sponsors an annual luncheon where they honor and present an award to the outstanding football player of the year in the San Ramon Valley High School district; commencing in 1996 the award was named The Peter Villa Award, in honor of Pete's dedication to the community and their football teams.
Socially, Pete enjoyed and took great pride in his Italian heritage. Monthly he looked forward to having lunch with his high school buddies and he kept in contact with many good friends and previous associates on a regular basis. One of his favorite past times was listening to books on tape. He loved to travel and had fond memories of trips to Italy. He was an Oakland A's fan and an avid high school football fan, who especially followed De La Salle's High School team.
Private Burial at St Joseph Cemetery, 2540 Church Lane, San Pablo, CA.