Marvin Kenneth Peterson

MARVIN K. PETERSON August 1931 ~ December 2016 A "REEL SWEDE" Marvin was born in Bismarck, North Dakota to Ruth and Ludwig Peterson, both of whom were born in the northern area of Sweden. Marvin was always proud of his pure Swedish Heritage. The family lived and grew up in Bismarck, however, Marvin left at the age of 18. When he was 9 years old, he was playing hide and seek with his cousins on his grandparent's farm and was bitten by a rattlesnake. He was in the hospital for a week recovering, and later testified in the North Dakota congress that there were too many rattlers. The result was a bounty of .25 cents created for the capture of rattlesnakes with the bounty staying in effect until 1961. Marvin was the second oldest of five children in the Peterson family. Laverne (Hagen), Ruth (Evans), Donald and Jim. In the summers, he would go to his grandparent's farm in Flasher, ND to work. However, he talked about doing a lot of pheasant hunting and fishing, too. The love of fishing lasted throughout his entire life, lamenting that he was physically unable to board a boat in his last two years of life. He came to Portland, OR when he was 18, looking for work. After doing some hard labor jobs for 6 months, he applied to the SP&S Railroad to be a brakeman and was employed in July, 1951. It wasn't long before he got a draft notice from the Army, but because of his love of the sea, he quickly enlisted in the Navy, for which he was always very proud. After boot camp and radar school, Marvin received his orders to serve on the USS Gurke, a destroyer assigned to fight in the Korean War. He received an honorable discharge from the Navy in May, 1953. After the Navy, Marvin came back to Portland and worked for the SP&S again. In August, 1955, Marvin asked Carol Mather out for a ride in his new '55 Buick 2 plus 2. They had only spoken before this evening on the telephone as Marvin was a friend of Carol's roommate. They fell in love and were married in Portland, OR in March 1956. They bought a home in the St. Johns area of Portland and welcomed their first child, Barbara in March 1957. Then, in November, 1958, they were blessed with another girl, Patricia. During this time, Marvin bought a duplex in Portland as an investment. It was the first apartment of many more to come, that they would acquire. In June, 1959 Marvin moved his family to Vancouver, WA, where he resided the rest of his life. Marvin and his father started building homes and were successful in selling 8 that they had built. In 1964, Marvin struck out on his own and started building apartments. His first was a 4-plex. Than it was an 8-plex, then a series of apartment complexes. Then a new development was begun in the outskirts of Vancouver - Cascade Park! It was proposed that we build 15 homes there, so before roads, before utilities, we took the plunge! No one would buy a home that far out!!! In the meantime, Marvin was building homes for the family, too. They would sell all too quickly, and we moved 5 times in a two year span! And during this hectic time of life, a son was welcomed into the family - James (Jim) in December, 1966. As construction was taking up too much of his time, Marvin was faced with the choice of railroad or build. He chose building and quit the railroad in 1972. During these years, Marvin and Carol traveled extensively, played tennis, belonged to organizations and enjoyed life when not working. Marvin took son, Jim on fishing trips to Alaska, where they had a lot of great fishing and good stories to tell. Marvin was still fishing as often as he could. He finally bought his own boat in 1990, the "Reel Swede" and started making annual August journeys to Pender Harbour, B.C., first with friends and then as grandchildren came into the family, they joined us along with their parents. Our grandchildren, to this day, say that their Pender Harbour memories are the best memories of their childhood. Marvin is survived by his wife, Carol of 60 years; children: Barbara (Paul) Bersani, Patricia Peterson, James Peterson; grandchildren, Stephen (Rudi) Bersani, Rem Baumann, Anna Bersani, Peter and Jared Baumann; siblings: Ruth Evans, Donald (Barbara) Peterson, Jim (Chrispy) Peterson and nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his sister, Laverne, father, Ludwig, and mother, Ruth. We wish to thank the Ray Hickey Hospice House for their wonderful and loving care of Marvin at the end. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Ray Hickey Hospice House or Veterans of Foreign Wars. At Marvin's wish, there will not be a funeral, but a Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Please sign his guestbook at: www.evergreenmemorialgardens.com and at www. columbian.com/obits

Marvin Kenneth Peterson

August 6, 1931 - December 6, 2016