John Erwin Peters

John Erwin Peters, age 80, died suddenly on March 15, 2024. He was born October 10, 1943 in Long Beach, California to John Peters and Susan Elizabeth Peters. John grew up in Oxnard, California and graduated from Santa Clara High School.

John graduated from Saint Mary’s College of California with a degree in Philosophy, spent a year at the University of Paris before volunteering for the Army in 1967.  Following Special Forces Training at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he went to Vietnam and volunteered to serve in the top secret MACV-SOG operation. John joined a Green Beret-led team that ran missions across the fence into Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam.  It was later learned that MACV-SOG suffered the highest casualty rate of the Vietnam war.  Additionally John signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement that forbade him from talking to anyone about the war for 20 years. John was assigned to Spike Team Rhode Island - a recon team consisting of two or three Green Berets running dangerous operations with indigenous troops at FOB1 in Phu Bai.  Following its closure he went to CCC in Kontum where he continued to run missions behind enemy lines until he completed his tour of duty in Southeast Asia.

John met his future wife, Marlow Engelhardt Peters, while traveling in Greece in 1971. After a year in Greece, he moved to San Francisco where he became the Owner’s Representative and Port Captain in Dammam Saudi Arabia for the American Steamship Company, Pacific Far East Lines. John and Marlow returned to Germany in 1981. For 15 years he helped manage the U.S. Air Force’s aerial port squadron at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, where he was the first civilian to hold the position of Squadron Operation Officer.

After leaving Germany in 1997, John and Marlow moved to Montgomery, Alabama where they started their herd of pet Belted Galloway steers.

John spent his life studying eclectically, thinking analytically and seeking wisdom.

John was predeceased by his parents and sister, Suzan Elizabeth Kettles. He is survived by his wife, Marlow. For 20 years he scrupulously took care of their small farm of Belted Galloway pet steers in Dresden, Tennessee. He loved his home in Northwest Tennessee - his wife, Marlow, the land, the animals, the birds and the friendly community.

In lieu of flowers, you may send memorials to your favorite charity.