Obituary of Dennis Wayne Riddell

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Dennis “Wayne” Riddell, of Herndon, Virginia, passed away on January 19, 2021 after a two year battle with cancer.

He was the son of the late, John Price Riddell, and is survived by his mother, Roberta Overton Riddell.  He was born on August 17, 1948 in Richmond, Virginia and moved to northern Virginia in 1961.

Wayne was a proud United States Marine who served in Vietnam from 1968 through 1969.  He joined Kilo Company 3/1 in Thuong Doc, South Vietnam. He had a love for his fellow Marines and his country.   Wayne was awarded the Navy Achievement Medal with Combat V for meritorious combat bravery. 

After the war, the majority of his professional career was with Verizon Telecommunications. In 2010, he retired after 35 years of service with Verizon to spend more time enjoying his family, seeing more of the United States, and continuing his passion for cycling. 

Wayne shared his passion for the Washington Redskins (now known as the Washington Football Team) with his wife, Sunit.  Football Sundays were not good days to plan visits or family gatherings.  He always looked forward to sharing his post-game analysis with his son and dad. 

Perhaps Wayne’s greatest passion was his love for cycling the W&OD trail or navigating some challenging mountain trails in Colorado and other western states.  He enjoyed watching the Tour de France every year. 

In his retirement, he designed and helped customize a high-top van for his annual cross-country vacations with his wife, Sunit.  Wayne ensured that both his mountain and street bikes fit securely in his van. 

Wayne chronicled his vacations to national parks, mountain ranges and national landmarks with the talent of a serious photographer.  His family always looked forward to seeing all the beautiful pictures of his adventures with Sunit.  He was the designated family photographer for weddings, family events, and holidays.

During his trips to Colorado, Wayne shared many days of mountain biking on some of Colorado’s challenging trails with his son, Daniel, who shared the same passion for cycling.  Wayne was thrilled to see his granddaughter, Cienna Joy, learning how to ride a bike at 3 years old and then continuing to mountain biking, following in her dad’s and grandfather’s path.

There was never a family gathering that Wayne would miss an opportunity to talk about his service in the Marines and his son, Daniel.   It always warmed the hearts of all his family members when he shared with us the deep love that he had for his wife, Sunit who worked tirelessly to care for him during his battle with cancer.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Wayne’s name to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.  A link to Wayne’s personalized donation page at St. Jude’s will be posted in the coming days.   

Wayne is survived by his mother, Roberta Overton Riddell of Annandale, VA; his loving wife, Sunit Riddell of Herndon, VA; his son Daniel Wayne Riddell and his granddaughter Cienna Joy Riddell both of Denver, CO.   He is also survived by his three siblings, Thomas Riddell of Annandale, VA; Ron Riddell of Arlington, VA; and Lori Riddell Shampang of Annandale, VA.  He is also survived by one niece, Caroline Shampang, and two nephews, Christopher Jones and Charles P. Shampang.

There will be a private memorial service for Wayne on Tuesday, January 26^th at 3:00 pm at Adams-Green Funeral Home in Herndon, Virginia.  The memorial service will be live streamed by accessing https://adamsgreen.com and clicking on Wayne’s obituary for the link.  The family welcomes you to join us virtually as we celebrate Wayne’s life.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to St. Judes Childrens Hospital: https://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/GiftFunds/GiftFunds?px=6905882&pg=personal&fr_id=39300