Patrick A. Pilling ’86 was a wonderful man who left us too early. He died at home on Dec. 7, at the age of 50, after a courageous battle with cancer. Born in Palo Alto, Calif., to Jack and Marie Pilling, he was the baby of the family. Pat went K-8 at Saint Albert the Great in Palo Alto, and then rode a train to San Jose everyday for the next four years to attend Bellarmine College Preparatory, where his father and older brother had also gone to school. While at Bellarmine, Pat played football and baseball. He graduated with honors and received the Student Scholar-Athlete award. He was later inducted into the Bellarmine Athletic Hall of Fame as part of the 1981 state championship football team.
Pat studied engineering at the University of Santa Clara while he played baseball on an athletic scholarship. Pilling pitched in the program from 1984-86 and played on the 1985 team that posted a 32-25 record. He made a team-high 22 appearances on the mound for the Broncos in 1985 and tied for the team lead with four saves. In 1986, Pilling tied for the team lead with 24 appearances and led the Broncos with three saves. Pat loved playing baseball, and he began coaching summer clinics for children at Stanford. Coaching youth sports became one of Pat’s great passions, and he continued it for the rest of his life. When Pat graduated, he was employed at Case Pacific, an engineering firm in the Bay Area. During this time, he went to San Jose State University at night and graduated with a master’s degree in engineering.
Pat met his wife, KayAnn Loudon ’87 of Reno, while they were studying at Santa Clara. They were engaged after graduation, and Pat moved to Reno, where they were married in 1989. Pat worked at various Reno engineering firms while attending the University of Nevada, Reno where he graduated with a Doctoral degree in Geotechnical Engineering. In 1997, Pat became a founding partner in Black Eagle Consulting, a local engineering firm. Pat eventually became the President and co-owner of Black Eagle, and he loved his work and was very proud to be part of the company. Pat received numerous awards, including The National Society of Professional Engineers’ Young Engineer of the Year award in 1996 and was the Outstanding Graduate Alumni of the University of Nevada, Reno in 2009.
Pat and KayAnn were married for 25 years and had three wonderful sons: Casey (20), Brett (19), and Tyler (16). Every year, Pat coached his sons in Little League baseball and Pop Warner football, and was even president of Reno National Little League for two years. As his boys grew, Pat became a football coach at Bishop Manogue High School where each of his sons attended and played. He most loved coaching and spending time with his boys. Pat’s other favorite activity was fishing; if he wasn’t working or coaching, he was fishing. Pat fished the world, but he most loved to fish at Lake Tahoe or Pyramid Lake, which was another activity the family did together. Pat loved the outdoors and also enjoyed hunting. He was a member of the Canvasback Duck Club in Stillwater, Nevada, and enjoyed hunting there whenever he could.
Pat was an amazing man who loved his family and friends. He was a hard worker and very successful in all of his endeavors. He loved life and he definitely made the best of every minute! Pat will be forever missed, and forever remembered.
Along with his wife and sons, Pat is survived by his mother, Marie Pilling; his sisters and brothers-in-law, Carol and Joe Byrne, Susie and Jim Bickel, Linda and Ted Fletcher; his brother and sister-in-law, Mike Pilling ’82 and Vicky Pilling; father and mother- in-law, Dr. Don and Kay Loudon; brother-in-law, Ross Loudon ’88; and many nieces and nephews.