Peter David Arneson

Peter David Arneson

Peter was born December 22, 1943 to Tom and Miriam Arneson.  He was the second born of a family that would grow to seven!

His siblings included one brother, Thomas II, and five sisters: Kristi, Wendy,  Sara, Amy, and Heidi.

He was preceded in death by his parents and sister Kristi.

In 1978 he married Chris (Mauser). Their son, Adam was born in 1979, and daughter Erin in 1981.

Peter is also survived by his grandchildren: Landon, Sierra, and Hailey Hayson, and Oliver and Lily Arneson, as well as his son-in-law Ben and daughter-in-law Kristine.

Peter was an industrious little boy, and by age nine he had his own paper route.  He’d arise very early and start the coffee, then ride his bike to pick up the papers He’d return home to roll the papers and drink coffee with his dad, then deliver them before school.

Peter was raised in New Brighton, but spent summers on the Iowa farm of  his grandparents. He’d take the train from Minneapolis to Des Moines the day after school was out in the spring, and take the train back the day before school in the fall. One year the grandparents took him back to Minneapolis...or he took them, because he drove all the way….he was 12!

He’d work hard on the farm, but occasionally play pranks on his grandmother, like the time he wore his cap in the house and took it off to show her a snake on his head!

Peter loved the outdoors -whether he was riding his motorcycles, driving his boats, or scuba diving (including diving under the ice in Lake Superior).. In the late 70’s he was the 5 State Motocross Champion, and had accumulated dozens of trophies in the sport.  

Peter had a great career at McGill/Jensen Printing Co. in St. Paul, where he sold printing to customers such as the U.S. Postal Service, including their hard bound stamp collector books.

In 1986 he photographed and then printed posters of  the St. Paul Ice Castle. The newspaper then gave them free to the public. People lined up outside the St. Paul Pioneer Press waiting for more posters, and Peter loaded the trunk of his car and delivered them hot off the press!

Peter was a great dad - he loved taking his family camping, skiing, boating, or on cross country road trips.  He had lots of time and patience the kids.

The family was disrupted when in April of 1993 Peter suffered a major stroke.  But after a month in rehab, he relearned how to walk and talk again. He refused to cancel a family driving trip to Washington D.C. planned for July., and he drove all the way there...through Chicago...while eating a Big Mac…and steering with his knee!

After meeting up with our Canadian friends in D.C, we proceeded to see the sights. It was steamy and about 94 when we got to the Lincoln Memorial, and of all of us, Peter was the only one who walked to the top.

He was also still able to continue participating with this kids sports, and most winter weekends found him manning the icy hills during their ski races. He was able to ride  his motorcycles once again despite his loss of balance, and took several long road trips such as to Banff, Canada!

When we bought an unfinished cabin in Wisconsin, he managed to do all the finish work; electrical, plumbing, sheet rock etc... with his disability.  It took him three months to accomplish.

Things slowed down considerably about 5 years ago, when he started losing the use of his legs.

Still, he kept his good outlook on life, and later when he was confined to an assisted living facility, he still had a smile for the staff and visitors.

Memorial service 2:00 p.m. Thursday, April 18, 2019 at David Lee Funeral Home, 1220 East Wayzata Boulevard, Wayzata with visitation one hour prior to the service.

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