Peter Wolff was a friend to all

Mukilteo lost one of its most colorful citizens last week when Peter Wolff passed away following a yearlong battle with ALS.
Peter died quietly at home on Monday, Sept. 24, with his wife of 25 years, Dru, and his family at his side.
A successful businessman, Peter was a founding member of the Mukilteo Business Association, a forerunner of the Chamber of Commerce. He served as president as well as other capacities, and was a champion for local business concerns as Mukilteo grew up.
According to his family, Peter started his professional life collecting and selling cars. Following retirement, he returned to that passion.
He built a livelihood and eventually his own business in all aspects of new furniture, from design to manufacturing to sales. But he also collected and sold antiques, and proved his business acumen in real estate and investments as well.
He was endlessly fascinated by and conversant in most subjects, from local politics to world events, and from art to music — a modern day renaissance man.
He loved a good joke, but was known for telling bad ones. Also known for his frugality, he was at the same time exceedingly generous.
Peter was born on March 28, 1933, in Berlin, Germany, to parents Georg and Hildegard Wolff. The family escaped from Nazi Germany in 1938.
According to Peter’s son Kevin, Peter’s father was a successful furrier who had to leave everything behind to escape Hitler’s wrath.
The family made their beds and left their home as if they would be returning. Instead, they drove to Holland and boarded a ship to America.
Peter had an uncle who didn’t escape and was killed in one of Hitler’s concentration camps.
They arrived and settled in New York City, starting over from scratch.
Peter lived a colorful life there. He studied fine arts and architecture, and as a young man lived in the Village where he hung out with jazz musicians and artists.
In 1960, Peter moved to Los Angeles where he entered the furniture business, eventually specializing in antiques.
His love of jazz and the arts continued. Son Kevin recalled his father dropping him off at rock concerts, and then driving over to the Baked Potato, a well-known Studio City jazz club, where he’d soak in the scene until it was time to pick Kevin up.
Peter found his life partner when he met Dru (Drucilla) in 1980. They married June 14, 1982, and moved to the Northwest in 1987, eventually settling in Mukilteo.
His wide-ranging interests included travel. In the winter, when business was slow, the couple would go skiing in Austria or Switzerland, or visit friends in Johannesburg. Everywhere he went, Peter easily made friends.
“His friends were incredibly important to him,” Kevin said. “But nobody was as important to him as Dru.”
Peter is survived by his wife, Dru; mother Hildegard; brother Emanuel and wife Elizabeth; sons Kevin and wife Janelle, Kurt; grandchildren Emily, Noah and Samuel, niece Glynnis, husband Cengiz and children Emre and Eren; nephews Soren and George.
Kevin said his father would most like to be remembered as a loving husband, father and grandfather who loved his family and had an amazing list of friends all over the world.
At his request, no services were scheduled.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be sent to: Muscular Dystrophy Association, ALS Division, 1010 SE Everett Mall Way, Ste. 210, Everett, WA 98208, www.mda.org.

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