Peter Joshua Tipping

Devoted husband, loving father, and a joyful soul with a smile for everyone and a joke for every occasion, Peter Joshua Tipping passed on Friday, July 27, 2018, while on vacation with his family near Vancouver, British Columbia. He was 41 years old. Pete was a towering personality, even beyond his 6-foot-3-inch frame, whose genuine warmth and concern for others was an honest reminder of what the world can be and should be. He was smart, but never pretentious; sarcastic, but never mean spirited; chatty, but always ready to listen; opinionated, but always thoughtful. A natural leader, Pete was quick to take charge, and just as quick to encourage and help those who struggled. Pete was an engineer by profession, but making people laugh and feel good about themselves was his calling. He was as skilled at playing to crowds of people as he was at engaging the only person in the room. When Pete asked you how you were doing, you knew he wanted to know the answer. And no matter how bad your day was, he had the innate ability to somehow make it and you better. The fifth of Gary and Irene Tippings eight children, Peter Joshua Tipping was born on Nov. 27, 1976, at St. Vincents Hospital, and made Toledo his lifelong home. He attended Toledo Covenant School for grade school, and graduated from Toledo Christian High School in 1994, having completed seventh and eighth grade in one year so that he could be in the same class as his older cousins and best friends, Phillip Finkler and Paul DeRaedt, collectively known as the 3Ps. A Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Ohio, Pete received a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Toledo in 1998, and worked as an engineer for Middough, Inc. for nearly a decade, until he joined BP as a project manager in 2008. He took tremendous pride in working with team members to do quality work at BP-Husky Refining, and he cared deeply about others and their safety, a commitment he exhibited daily and without fail. Work was important to Pete. But family was everything to him. Pete met the love of his life, Blythe Myers Tipping, while in college. They married on Aug. 4, 2002, and rarely spent much time apart after that. After settling into their first home in west Toledo, the couple became parents to sons Isaac and Edmund Tipping. Pete excelled at fatherhood and relished being part of his sons lives, as a soccer and baseball coach and Cub and Boy Scout Troop leader. He was a role model for other fathers, and a father figure to children who needed one. Pete was an Eagle Scout, the highest ranking the Boy Scouts of America offers, and one only about four percent of Scouts attain. More impressive than Petes achievement in rank, though, was his never-wavering embodiment of what it means to be a Scout, those 12 points of the Scouts law such as being trustworthy, loyal, friendly, courteous, cheerful, brave, and reverent. Passionate about sports, Pete was a proud Ohio State Buckeyes fan, which made smiling easy, and a tortured Browns fan, which made joking a necessity. He also loved the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings, so much so that he stood up Blythe on their first date so that he wouldnt miss the opportunity to see the Red Wings in person. Pete played sports, too; he was a fierce competitor in the local beach volleyball leagues, as he was in almost any challenge, athletic or otherwise. He was a voracious reader and a wellspring of pop culture references and knowledge. He maintained a meticulously kept yard often the envy of the block and loved to cook from Americas Test Kitchens recipe books for family and friends. His impressive skills went beyond the yard and the kitchen, though, and included the ability to make and fix almost anything. Others knew he could always be counted on to assist them with their projects as well. Pete loved Toledo, but he also loved to see those places far beyond his back yard; in the past few years he and his family have vacationed in Europe, South Africa, Mexico, Canada, and across the nation. Family and friends were Petes priorities, and it was his unbreakable faith that guided and informed him in everything he did. A devout Christian, Pete was an elder at First Alliance Church, and he and Blythe hosted weekly get-togethers called small group with other church members. Pete and other First Alliance members helped build a church in Thailand as part of their mission trip to that country. Not everyone knew Pete, and thats a shame, because everyone who did know Pete is better for it. And while we mourn his marked absence in our lives, our many fond and treasured memories of Pete keep him forever close by and always at the ready to make us laugh, just as he did in life with his easy smile and gregarious spirit. Pete is survived by parents, Gary and Irene; wife, Blythe; sons Isaac and Eddie; sister, Andrea (John) Kanfeld, brothers Matthew (Julie), Edmund (Nicole), Daniel (Rachel), Jerry (Christy), Joseph, and Benjamin Tipping; two special cousins, Phillip Finkler and Paul DeRaedt; in-laws Dale and Margaret Myers, and Stewart and Stephen (Erin) Myers; and 13 nieces and nephews, as well as numerous uncles, aunts, and cousins. The visitation will be from 2-8 p.m., Friday at Walker Funeral Home, 5155 Sylvania Ave. (west of Corey Rd.) and the funeral will be at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 4, 2018 at First Alliance Church, 2201 Monroe St., Toledo, OH 43604. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations go toward the boys college savings fund (https://www.gofundme.com/isaac-amp-eddie-tipping-college-fund) or to First Alliance Church.