Everett Kie Petersen

Everett Kie Petersen, age 77, died Wednesday, August 5, 2020, at MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center in Mason City from COVID-19.  Everett was born on August 30, 1942 in Harlan, Iowa.  He was the youngest of Allen and Clara (Juhl) Petersen’s four sons and was raised on a farm near Irwin.  Everett graduated from Irwin High School in 1961 and graduated from Dana College in Blair, NE, in 1966 with a degree in sociology.  After graduation, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and attended Officer Candidate School.  During his tour in Vietnam, he reached the rank of 1st Lieutenant with the 101st Airborne Division and was awarded the Purple Heart for injuries he received in combat.

  On February 28, 1970, he married Doreen Reding at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sioux City. Everett graduated with a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Iowa in 1972 and worked for the state as a social worker for many years.  In 1975, Everett and Doreen moved to a farm near Latimer to raise their children.  Everett eventually began farming full time and received the Iowa Master Pork Producer Award in 1988.

  Everett was a devoted husband and father who loved attending his children’s activities and coached many of their youth ball teams.  Everett was an avid reader of history, an astute follower of politics, and passionate about his beloved Iowa Hawkeyes and Chicago Cubs. During his retirement years, he and Doreen traveled throughout the United States and abroad, including trips to Denmark, Russia, Vietnam, Italy, and Turkey.  Everett also cherished family visits at the Petersen and Reding family reunions.

  Everett was preceded in death by his parents, brothers John and Peter Petersen, and sister-in-law Pamela Petersen.  Survivors include Doreen; son Christopher of North Plains, OR; daughter Cara (David Ricksecker) of Washington, DC; grandchildren Caden Petersen, Phoebe Ricksecker, and Samuel Ricksecker; brother Roger of Blair, NE; sisters-in-law Shirley Petersen of Canyon, TX, and Barbara Petersen of Irwin, IA; and many nieces and nephews. 

  In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions to the Food Bank of Iowa, P.O. Box 1517, Des Moines, IA, 50305, www.foodbankiowa.org, or the Alzheimer’s Association, www.alz.org.  And Everett would want you to vote in November.

  Cards of condolences may be sent to Everett’s family at Sietsema Vogel Funeral Home, PO Box 403, Hampton, IA, 50441.

  Services will be held at a later date with burial in the Iowa Veterans Cemetery, rural Adel, Iowa.  The Sietsema Vogel Funeral Home of Hampton is assisting Everett’s family.

www.sietsemavogelfuneralhomes.com