Brent Peterson

Brent Peterson, age 59 of Alta, Iowa died of liver cancer on Monday, February 26, 2018 surrounded by his family and friends at the Buena Vista Regional Medical Center in Storm Lake. His daughter Lindsey wrote the following obituary in his honor. Memorial services will be held Friday, March 2, 2018 at 11:00 a.m. at Lakeside Presbyterian Church in Storm Lake. Visitation will take place Thursday, March 1, 2018 from 4-8:00 p.m. at the Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the family. The Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements. Brent was born June 22, 1958 in Storm Lake, Iowa to Carol and Loretta (Stern) Peterson, and they raised him alongside his four siblings on their family farm near Linn Grove. From an early age and inspired by his father and his great-uncle Carl, he quickly developed a love of the outdoors, farming, and woodworking. While attending school in Alta, he met Lorinda Zylstra, and they were married on March 31, 1979. As a driven young couple, they worked hard to transform the family farmstead into a beautiful home for their lives together. He relished in the labor, becoming a skilled farmer, Master-level electrician, woodworker, and an avid fisherman, but these titles cannot truly capture the myriad of skills and creativity he possessed. He always looked forward to his yearly fishing trip to Canada with friends. In 1992, Brent and Lorinda welcomed their only daughter, Lindsey, into their lives. From the very beginning he began teaching me many of the things he loved, especially fishing, woodworking, and above all his unquenchable desire to discover. Most importantly, he demonstrated the role of a model husband, as he always showed my mom the greatest level of respect and filled their marriage with jokes and laughter. I truly cannot express how much my dad loved his bride Lorinda. Brent was a fundamentally kind man who was always ready to help his neighbors and community. As someone who taught himself so many of his own skills, he devoted much of his time to helping young farmers begin their own careers and he shared his talents and passions with them. Many wonderful friendships grew from his mentoring. Those left to carry on Brent’s legacy include his wife Lorinda Peterson of Alta, Iowa, his daughter and her husband, Lindsey Peterson and Adam Bockelman of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, his dog Eddy and grand-puppy Mosby, his parents Carol and Loretta Peterson of Storm Lake, siblings Cindy and Randy Souder of Lytton, Janelle and Lou Martin of Alpharetta, Georgia, Craig and Dana Peterson of Marietta, Georgia, and Lisa and Kevin Martin of Pocahontas, his parents-in-law Lee and Velma Zylstra of Alta and brother and sister-in-law Layton and Becki Zylstra of Alta. He loved all of these people so much, as well as his many nieces and nephews.

Brent Peterson

June 22, 1958 - February 26, 2018