~ 1937 - 1973 ~
A Memorial
Bob Peterson in Europe, about a year
before he met my mother.
This is a memorial to my father,
who was taken from us 33 years ago. He was a
very loving and caring father...even if my sister
and I didn't always think so (haha!).
My parents divorced when I was two, but Daddy
would come around from time to time to take my
older sister and me on trips. Sometimes we'd go
horseback riding, sometimes to the beach, to the
snow, or just to hang out with him at his apartment.
He even took us to Disneyland once *S*
When we'd go out to eat, he'd ask us: What do
you want to eat? We'd say we wanted things like
hamburgers, fries, and sodas, and then he'd say:
Now here's what you're gonna have.
He always made sure we ate healthy things,
because he cared about our health.
When our dog had puppies by a neighbor's dog,
Daddy went to pick out a puppy for us. Mom said
he could pick one puppy, but of course he
brought us two: a male for me, and a female for
my sister. He explained that he tried to separate
them, but they cried and cried, so he had to keep
them together. This was his way of pulling a fast
one, but it also showed that he cared about my
sister and me, wanting us to each have our own dog.
He chose the names for the puppies, using nicknames
he'd created for us: Waterhouse and Foobong. I never
knew how he came up with those names, but they were
funny and personal, and perfect choices for the pups.
Following is the text of the obituary, of which
I've had a laminated copy clipped from the paper:
Tues., Sept. 4, 1973
Robert G. Peterson
MOUNTAIN VIEW - Robert George Peterson,
35, a former Mountain View resident, was
killed in a two-car crash near Lost Hills
on Highway 46 northwest of Bakersfield,
according to the California Highway Patrol.
A 27-year-old Lost Hills man also died when
his car and Peterson's collided on a straight
stretch of Highway 46, according to the CHP.
The crash occured early Tuesday morning.
Friends of Peterson said his ex-wife, who has
remarried, lives in this area with the couple's
two children.
He was Daddy. He was like a god to me, back
when I was a little boy. He was killed two
months before my eighth birthday, and the
loss changed my life forever. Even now, I'm
still deeply affected by it. I miss him.
Home