Patrick Riley is a fourth generation Northern Californian. He was born and raised and still lives in Oakland. Beginning in his childhood he has spent hundreds of hours in the various parks of the East Bay hills. His other major interest when young was sports, particularly basketball where he learned the value of teamwork, a lifelong learning.

Pat graduated from law school in 1970. Four years later he became disillusioned with the practice of law, partly because he could not spend enough time with his two daughters, and opened a family day care home for preschool age children. He did that for 12 years and then returned to the law field as a trust and estates attorney where he could use some of the skills he developed doing day care.

Pat has meditated almost daily since he was in his early thirties. He has been a member of the Bay Zen Center for 20 years. For the past 7 years he has been one of the teachers of the center’s dharma school. He believes that children cannot start too young to understand that, although their primary task is to develop a strong identity, that this growth needs to be done in the context of a larger perspective - one that shines the light on their connection to not only their family and friends but the larger human community as well as all of the myriad expressions of nature.

Now retired, Pat enjoys time with his grandchildren and children. He looks forward to working with the Stepping Stones community and sharing his perspective, with the understanding that there is always more to learn.