John Willis Riley

John Willis "Buster" Riley Buster passed away of natural causes at the age of 89 on Tuesday, December 16th, 2014, at 12:08 p.m. in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Buster was a New Mexico native. He was born on May 15, 1925 in Carlsbad, New Mexico to parents Oma and Foy Riley. He was the second born of three siblings, including Oma Faye and Betty Jean. He attended parochial school in Deming, while living on a working cattle ranch near the Florida Mountains. Upon graduation from high school in 1943, he joined the Army Air Corp. Even though he never saw a battle field, he served his country with honor. In 1945 he entered the College of Mechanical Arts, now New Mexico State University, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. He graduated in 1949 and went to work for the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management. Buster and Marka Vaughan were married December 19th, 1953, in Las Cruces. His degree in agriculture, combined with his knowledge of cattle, gave him a love of the land and a desire to manage it well. He remained at the bureau until retiring in 1979. He served as a District Manager while residing in Montrose, Colorado from 1958 to 1966, Burns, Oregon, from 1966 to 1970. He was then promoted to a position at the U.S. Department of Interior in Washington, D.C. and worked there from 1970 to 1975. His long and fruitful career allowed him to move his family to many beautiful parts of the country, but his home was always southern New Mexico, so it is fitting that this is where he is laid to rest. Buster loved the outdoors. He took his family to many national parks, monuments, and natural wonders, instilling an appreciation and awe of nature and its beauty. He loved horses, camping and hunting. He is survived by ex-wife Marka Vaughan Riley, Denver, CO, daughters Katy Riley Moore (Jeff), Sturgeon Bay, WI , Kathleen Riley McClain (James), Charlottesville, VA, Marka Riley Ryan, Denver, CO; grand-children Sarah Moore, Milwaukee, WI, Sara McClain, Oshima, Japan, Tyler Ryan (Rachael) Cocoa, Florida; great-grand-children Morgan and Lillith Ryan, Cocoa, Florida; sister Betty Riley Van Pelt, Las Cruces; nieces Barbara Van Pelt Salazar (Ezekel), Tuscon, AZ, Peggy Van Pelt Feind (Rand), Las Cruces, Lynn Van Pelt Arnold, Las Cruces, Sandy Van Pelt Medina(Mario), Las Cruces; Geri Biggs Vantine, Las Cruces. He was preceded in death by his father, John "Foy" Riley, mother, Oma Harden Riley Hill, sister, Oma Faye Riley Biggs and brother-in-law, "Tough" Biggs, brother-in-law, "Rusty" Van Pelt. Buster will be cremated at Getz Funeral Home, and inurnment will take place at Hillcrest Memorial Garden Cemetery in Las Cruces on Saturday, January 10, 2015 at 11:00 a.m. He will be remembered for his service during the memorial at the cemetery by the Fort Bliss Honor Guard with a 21 gun salute. The family would like to express our appreciation and gratitude to the director, Jill Shannon, and staff of Cassa Bella Residential Care Facility in Las Cruces. They treated our dad with kindness and dignity while he was under their care. We would also like to thank Getz Funeral Home for all their help. And lastly, we can't express enough how much we appreciate the love and care dad received from his sister Betty and nieces Lynn and Peggy during his last days here on this earth.