Dean A. Peterson

Rev. Dean A. Peterson, age 84, died on July 15, 2024 from complications of cancer.   

A recent resident of Sunrise Assistive Living of Naperville North in Naperville, Illinois, Dean lived for 30 years in Escanaba, Michigan.

Born on July 6, 1940,  Dean grew up in Fort Dodge, Iowa. He graduated from Fort Dodge Senior High School in 1958 after participating in baseball, basketball, student council, and barbershop quartet. 

He attended Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, majoring in psychology and philosophy. The summer after his junior year, Dean traveled in the Augustana Synod’s Youth Caravan movement and discerned a call to ordained ministry. He was also involved in college theater productions, including one where he met his wife of 59 years, Elaine Stone Peterson. 

Dean graduated from Augustana College in 1962 and began his Master of Divinity degree at Augustana Theological Seminary. He and Elaine lived in separate cities, but not for long. Elaine and Dean married in 1964 and began their lifetime of shared ministry when he was ordained in the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) in 1966. 

Known as “Pastor Pete” to the thousands of people he touched in his decades of ministry, Dean served congregations and communities in Nebraska (Bethany Lutheran in Axtell), Illinois (Faith Lutheran in Glen Ellyn), Wisconsin (Grace Lutheran in Ripon), and his longest term call at Bethany Lutheran in Escanaba, Michigan. Dean’s final full-time call was as Campus Pastor and Director of Church Relations at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin where he mentored and supported young adults, some of whom discerned their own call to ordained ministry. After he retired and moved with Elaine back to Escanaba, he also served as Director of Bay Area Campus Ministry and interim pastor at Bethany Lutheran Church, where he was conferred the office of Pastor Emeritus. 

Dean’s ministry could be characterized by the quote from renowned theologian Karl Barth: “Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.” Dean was a voracious reader of the news and sought ways to connect our lives of faith to what was happening in the world around us. H. Richard Niebuhr’s 1951 book “Christ and Culture” was Dean’s most formative theological influence.

Dean made a difference in his community and the broader world through his time on the Escanaba School Board, his support of Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp, and his time on the Alumni Board of Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. But his most enduring legacy may be the thousands of worship services he led, sermons he preached, and people he connected with across his decades of ministry. 

In addition to his public and professional vocation as pastor, Dean was a proud husband and father, and an energetic social extrovert. As their children grew, Dean and Elaine attended hundreds of sporting events and arts performances. Even when their own children were adults, the Petersons continued to support community arts events and sports, especially in Escanaba. Dean was an early adopter of technology, purchasing his first video camera and Apple computer in the early 80s. Dean maintained a close group of friends wherever he was living. He loved gathering for breakfast at local cafes, attending weekly late-night saunas, playing raquetball and golf, and embarking on annual fishing trips. 

He is preceded in death by his dear wife, Elaine, his mother, Nina, and his father, D.A. 

Dean is survived by his and Elaine’s three children Scott, Dawn (Jonathan), and Joel (Carey); grandchildren Riley and Jace Peterson, Paavo and Svea Rundman, and Tyler and Eli Peterson; brother Gary Peterson and sister Connie Wisner; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and in-laws. 

The Peterson family offers their deepest thanks to the staff at Sunrise Senior Living and Residential Hospice Care for providing skilled, compassionate care for Dean during his time at Sunrise.

A Memorial Visitation will be held Saturday, August 3, 2024, 1:00-3:00 PM at Bethany Lutheran Church, 202 S 11th St, Escanaba, MI 49829.

Dean’s Memorial Service will follow the visitation at 3:00 PM with a fellowship hour to follow at the church.

Clergy are invited to vest and process-- the color of the day is green. Clergy should be ready at 2:45 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be shared with Bethany Lutheran Church, also online at https://www.bethanyescanaba.com/give-to-bethany ; or with Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp, 138 Fortune Lake Camp Road, Crystal Falls, MI 49920 and online at https://fortunelake.org/support/donate/

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