Dennis James Peterson

Dennis J. Peterson, 70 of Casper passed away Monday August 26, 2024 peacefully at home after a two year battle with cancer.

He was born January 1, 1954 in Siren, Wisconsin to Anton and JoAnn Peterson and was awarded the honor of being the first baby born in the area that year. He spent the next eighteen years of his life in Webster, Wisconsin where he enjoyed helping his many uncles on their farms, hunting and fishing.

Denny met his future wife at Webster Jr High School, marrying one year to the day after graduation and moving to White Bear Lake, MN shortly after where they raised two daughters.

Denny spent his early years doing factory work, but after getting laid off year after year and needing a steady income for his family, he went to work for the Minnesota Department of Corrections where he started as a guard and worked his way up to Fugitive Sergeant. He was well liked and respected by his superiors, his co-workers and the inmates. He proudly served the state for 31 years before retiring in July 2014.

In 2022 Denny and Pat moved to Casper since the mountains had been calling them for a long time. While it was quite the "move" downsizing from their four bedroom home to a condo, they have enjoyed their new home and met so many wonderful people and made many new friends. Casper felt like home from the minute they saw it. We got to travel some to see the Wyoming sites and loved going to BIg Sky, Montana, Yellowstone National Park and spending winters in Florida.

Denny was always a "caretaker" making sure to take care of his parents, brother and mother-in-law and would do whatever he could to help them out. He was a kind, generous man that would do whatever it took to make others feel good. He loved being a "Papa" more than anything else. So many good memories were made with his five grandkids.

Denny is survived by his wife of 51 years Pat; daughters Teri (Brandon Byers) Eskuri, Melissa (Rino) Nazal; grandchildren Kaitlin and Jae Eskuri, Cameron, Amelia and Lauren Nazal; brother Jerry and sister Lori (Marvin) Johnson; many uncles, aunts and cousins as well as numerous friends he has made over the years.

A small Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday October 5th at 1:00PM at Bustard and Jacoby Funeral Home, 600 CY Ave, Casper, WY  with another celebration in Minnesota at a future time.

We would  like to thank the staff at Rocky Mountain Oncology and Central Wyoming Hospice who helped facilitate this journey.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society, Central Wyoming Hospice, conservation groups or the National Parks in his honor.