Peter Ralph Golden

Pete Golden of Little Flock, Arkansas, passed away on December 13, 2025, at the age of 63. He was born Peter Ralph Golden to Katharine Butler Golden and Thomas Golden on August 17, 1962. Pete was the youngest of six children and spent his first two years in the booming desert city of Phoenix, Arizona, before relocating with his family to a small town on the vast South Dakota prairie. For the next eight years, he was shaped by the Main Street principles of the heartland, before his father’s nomadic gene was activated and the family moved to a farm outside the even smaller town of Decatur, Arkansas. The next family move was two years later to Pottsville, Pennsylvania, and less than two years after that to Sunnymead, California. Frequent family moves forged Pete into someone with great adaptability. His mother often reminded the family to “Bloom where you are Transplanted,” and that is exactly what he did for the remainder of his life.

Pete spent the next decade in Sunnymead (now known as Moreno Valley, California), working construction jobs and studying to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of California – Riverside. Throughout his work and study schedule, he also forged enduring bonds with high school friends Travis and Jerry, whom he cherished his entire life. He would often fill his free time at the Colorado River town of Bullhead City, Arizona, jet-skiing with them. After earning his degree, Pete moved to Huntington Beach, California. He began working in project management for a global engineering and construction firm, the Bechtel Corporation, in their Orange County offices. This period of his life was an immense source of pride for him and further challenged him to be adaptable in a corporate setting. After his stint with Bechtel, Pete relocated to the Phoenix metropolitan area and began working in the private security sector, where he was beloved by many of his clients. When that company ceased operations in 2025, Pete transplanted himself back to Northwest Arkansas to be closer to family.

Pete is survived by his goddaughter, Sarah of Maricopa, Arizona, and his siblings Becky of Gentry, Arkansas, Sara of Rogers, Arkansas, Megan of Little Flock, Arkansas, Neil of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and his lifelong friends, Travis and Jerry. He was preceded in death by his parents, Thomas and Katharine, and his older brother Nathaniel (Steve).