Peter Eric Carlson

Peter Eric Carlson, known to many as “Pete,” “GrandPete,” “Uncle Pete,” “Coach,” “Gran Torino,” and “The Buzzard,” passed away peacefully at his home on July 27, 2026, in Tucson, Arizona, just six days before his 96th birthday. Born on August 2, 1930, in Greenwich, Connecticut, to the late John H. Carlson and Elsa P. Carlson, Pete lived a full and remarkable life shaped by athletics, family, hard work, and a generous spirit that touched everyone around him.

Pete grew up in Greenwich and attended Riverside Elementary School and then Brunswick School where he was a standout three-letter athlete. He went on to the University of Delaware, courtesy of the Philadelphia Phillies, where he became a star pitcher on the baseball team. His talent on the mound earned him a contract with the Boston Braves in the summer of 1952, and he spent three years with the Braves organization playing in Evansville, Indiana and Quebec, Canada. During that time, he also served two years during the Korean War in the U.S. Army at Ft. Lewis in Washington where he pitched for the Ft. Lewis baseball team and provided entertainment for the troops. In his later years, Pete played on many softball teams in Greenwich and finished his softball career playing for and managing the Vero Beach Codgers before moving to Arizona at age 75. His athletic legacy was recognized when the Greenwich Old Timers Athletic Association honored him in 1988, and he was inducted into the Brunswick School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2016.

Pete retired from baseball and married the love of his life, Elizabeth "Betty" Phillips, in May of 1956, and together they shared 61 wonderful years until her passing in 2017. Pete joined his father and brother in the insurance business where he worked for 40 years and retired as President of Carlson & Carlson, Incorporated, a family-owned independent insurance agency in New York City and Greenwich in 1995. For fifteen years, Pete was a disciplined and dedicated baseball coach to hundreds of young men in Greenwich with the Binney Bruins, the Hoyt Bruins, and the Greenwich Babe Ruth All-Star teams.

Pete and Betty lived in Old Greenwich and Riverside, Connecticut, Quechee, Vermont, and Vero Beach, Florida before settling in Tucson, Arizona to be near family. They were past members of the Rocky Point Club, Innis Arden Golf Club, the Quechee Club, Hawks Nest Golf Club, and Skyline Country Club, where they made many good friends. In retirement, Pete honed his skills building stone walls for family, friends, and neighbors in the Tucson Foothills for nothing more than the cost of the cement and a few Pepsi Colas.

Pete was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Betty; his parents; and his brother, John H. Carlson, Jr. He is survived by his daughter Barbara C. Wheeler (Rick) of Tucson, his son Peter E. Carlson, Jr. (Sue) of Riverside, his daughter June C. Hussey (Bill) of Tucson, and his sister Phyllis C. Freeman (Don) of North Chatham, Massachusetts, along with ten grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews and their families.

A Celebration of Life will be held in Greenwich, Connecticut on a future date to be announced.

Memorial donations may be made in Pete’s honor to the Greenwich Old Timers Youth Sports Alliance, PO Box 558, Greenwich, CT 06836, or online at www.greenwicholdtimers.org.