Summary

Riley E. Sorley

Born February 10, 1945, to parents Virginia Marie Riley and Edwin Leroy Sorley. Both have preceded him in death. Riley had three siblings, David Sorley and Ronald Sorley who both preceded him in death and Robert Vanat who survives. He attended Emmerich Manual High School but did not graduate.
Riley retired from Ford Motor Company after 30+ years of service. He did everything from a lineman, forklift driver, parts specialist and anything else they could get him to do! He also worked a part time job to help ends meet at a Western Bowl for several years.
He had a passion for working on things, taking things apart and putting things back together enabling him to see how things “ticked”. He loved mechanical challenges and when younger, always had a project going on. He would build things from scratch without any formal carpenter skills.
He was married to his first wife and had two daughters, Tammy Hester and Janeen Sorley.
He married his second wife, Patricia Wilson, who had 5 children. She preceded him in death. After retirement, he and Pat moved to Florida, which was their dream location to live. In retirement, he worked at their favorite vacation spot, The Sandlewood Beach Resort, in Redington Beach, Florida. They always went to the same place, ate at the same restaurants and spent time on the same beach every year for several years. At the Resort, he worked as a groundsman and maintenance for the property. His love for the ocean and Florida was always a topic of discussion. The ocean always brought him peace and joy and because of that, his ashes will be scattered out to become one with the ocean. Riley was quick witted and loved to joke around. He enjoyed family dinners and reminiscing about “back in day” events. He was fascinated with technology and would try to learn how to navigate items with the help from others.
Survivors include brother, Robert (Teri) Vanat, daughter, Tammy (Andrew) Hester, Granddaughter, Maleah (Anthony) Myers, Granddaughter, Summer (Brendan) Stickle and Grandson, Chad Spencer.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date. Arrangements entrusted to Simple Cremation Indianapolis. 6904 South East Street, Suite E, Indianapolis, IN 46227. (317) 361-4749. www.simplecremationindianapolis.com