Annette O’Malley has passed away at the age of 81. Mrs. O’Malley, the wife of Peter O’Malley, former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and President of the Little League® Foundation, was a supervisor and designer at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Mrs. O’Malley, a native of Copenhagen, studied graphics and design at the Academie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris and the Croydon College of Art in London.
Dodgers Team President from 1970-to-1998, Mr. O’Malley assumed ownership of the National League club after his father, Walter, passed away in 1979.
Married in 1971, Mr. and Mrs. O’Malley proudly oversaw operation of the Dodgers franchise and traveled to various locations through the world promoting the sport of baseball. Mr. O’Malley was a strong supporter of the international development of the Little League program.
“On behalf of Peter’s many friends in the Little League program around the world and in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, I want to offer our deepest condolences to him and the O’Malley family,” said Stephen D. Keener, Little League President and CEO. “It’s my hope they can take a small measure of comfort during this difficult time from knowing they are in the thoughts of all of us.”
Regularly attending spring training with her family at Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida, Mrs. O’Malley spent considerable time with the players, their wives, and children.
Avid, long-time supporters of the Little League program, the O’ Malley family was instrumental in the revitalization of youth baseball and softball in Los Angeles, which served as a forerunner to the development of the Little League Urban Initiative program. Mr. O’Malley also personally contributed many years of service as Little League Foundation President.
Mrs. O’Malley is survived by her husband, Peter; children Katherine, Kevin, and Brian, eight grandchildren, and sister, Merete Lunn.