Elizabeth “Jean” Peterson

Jun 19, 1920 - Jun 17, 2014

Jean was born June 19, 1920, in Vallejo, California, to Cleveland and Euphemia Moore. She passed peacefully on June 17, 2014, in Carson City, Nevada. She was two days shy of her 94th birthday. Jean and her only brother, Cleveland Wallace Jr., spent their childhood years in Vallejo, Tujunga, Nevada City and Grass Valley, California. Jean graduated from Grass Valley High in 1937 and in the following years attended many reunions; the most recent was the 70th which was held in Grass Valley on September 28, 2007. When she was 21 Jean moved to San Francisco and while working at SUPSHIP met her future husband, Harry Peterson. They were married on June 29, 1946 and later settled in Los Altos, California where they raised their two children, Donald and Christine. Jean returned to the workforce during the early 1960’s and remained there until retiring in the 1980’s. After Harry died in 2001, she moved to Carson City, Nevada to be near her daughter. Jean loved her job as an executive secretary at Fairchild Semiconductor in Mt. View, California. She also loved, and excelled at, bowling, bridge and extremely difficult cryptic crossword puzzles. Jean’s home for the past ten years has been Sierra Place in Carson City. While living there she made many friends and benefitted greatly from the love and care she received. She is survived by her son, Don Peterson, and his companion, Lillian Jarahian, of Redding, California; by her daughter and son-in-law, Christine and Emory Alexander, of Carson City; by two nieces, Marilyn Coy and Pamela Gensburg; and by several grand and great-grand nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, her brother and both parents. Jean had a kind, gentle spirit and will be missed by all who knew her. At Jean’s request there will be a family memorial held in San Francisco at a later date.