Virginia K. Peter

Virginia K. Peter died peacefully in her sleep on March 21, 2018 with her family beside her. Virginia was born on January 27th, 1938 in Peebles, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin to Louis P. Nett and Eleanor Fritz. On July 19, 1968 she married Richard F. Peter in Worthington, Ohio. She is survived by her sons Gregory A. Peter (Cathy), Appleton, WI and Brian J. Peter (Minnie), Los Altos, CA; her grandchildren: Jordynn Peter, Darby Peter, and Theo Peter, and her brother, Bruce Nett (Joyce), Oregon, WI. She was preceded in death by her parents Louis and Eleanor, husband Richard, brothers: Louis, Roger, Eugene "Mupie," James, and sisters Doreen, Joan, and Mary. She received her bachelor's degree from Alverno College, Milwaukee, WI, and her masters and Ph.D. in German Literature from the University of Colorado, Boulder, CO. During her doctoral work, she studied in Freiburg, Germany for a year before returning to Boulder. She began teaching at Alverno, and stayed for a number of years, and then taught at Eastern Kentucky University and Denison University. She married Rich when he was studying for his doctorate at the Ohio State University, and they moved to Elk Mound, WI, where they had two boys. Virginia taught in the Education department at UW-Stout, Menomonie, WI for 20 years. After retirement Virginia and Rich moved to a cabin on Black Dan Lake in Winter, WI, where they lived for 16 years until they moved to Wausau, WI in 2011. Virginia kept a large and beautiful garden by the lake. After retirement she was certified as a Master Gardener and wrote a gardening column. She was also interested in geneology, traced her family roots back to 1635, and kept contact with distant relatives she had met through her geneology research. She always loved to travel, and after retirement she and Rich traveled to Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Canada, and Mexico, but her favorite times were those spent with her children, grandchildren, and friends. After Rich died in 2016, Virginia was not lonely, and instead spent many hours and laughs in the company of close friends. Virginia's family wishes to express special gratitude to Dr. Islam and the Oncology nurses at St. Michael's Hospital in Stevens Point who cared for Virginia during the six months she had cancer, and also to the Aseracare Hospice workers who provided loving care in the last days. A Memorial service will be held at the Peterson/Kraemer Funeral Home 1302 6th Street, Wausau, WI at 1pm on Friday March 30, 2018, with visitation at the funeral home from 11am-1pm preceding the service. In lieu of flowers, donations can be given to the family who will establish a memorial fund for Virginia Peter. The family will use the funds to support the hospice programs in Marathon County. Online condolences may be expressed at www.petersonkraemer.com