Martha Ethel Peterson

Martha Ethel Bozony was born On October 4th, 1930 in what she described as “a cute little house” in Minneapolis. Born to Czechoslovakian immigrants, Paul and Suzie Bozony, Martha and her older brother Milan were raised bilingual. Martha continued to speak, read, and write in the Slovak language as she corresponded and connected with her many relatives in Slovakia throughout her life. Martha remained very proud of her heritage, traveling to visit her mother’s birthplace and family homes, welcoming relatives to the US, and decorating our home with treasured weavings, artwork, needlework, and stunning cut glass from Slovakia. In her youth her father fixed up houses so they moved a lot, but Martha never gave it a thought. She always attended the same schools and said that was a blessing. Her parents made sure she got piano lessons and she also played the trumpet, that she always had clean, crisply-pressed clothes, and was raised in a faith-filled and prayerful Christian home. She remembers walking everywhere, having no worries, spending time with her best friend and cousin Ruthie, and skating for hours at the ice rink by her home on long blades bought for her by her brother.

As they settled into the Slovak community, her parents created a life for her and her older brother Milan that was centered around their Slovak Baptist Church at 7 Corners in Minneapolis, MN. It was a thriving church and it was there that her love for music took off through the choir and organist who often encouraged her in her music. She would play piano and sing in Slovak at church and her mother would recite poetry. Martha went on to sing solos in elementary school, found a place in a quartet in her teenage years and they would travel to churches with a pastor, providing the music for his ministry. She and her friends would often ride the streetcar to the “Hospitality House”, a Christian hang-out in downtown Minneapolis, where they would also sing. At other times they would pile into cars and go caroling with the church choir to homes around town.

Martha was a drum majorette in high school with her cousin Ruthie. They made up their own routines and marched in the Minnesota Aquatennial parade for South High. She remembered “There we were in hot wool uniforms….with our boots with the orange tassels and little skirts. That was a big deal!” Martha wanted a Christian college and chose Augsburg as she lived close enough to walk to campus. She majored in Biology and minored in Home Economics, played badminton and tennis, and sang in the Augsburg college choir taking trips to Midwest churches. After graduation from Augsburg, she completed courses at the U of M to become a Licensed Practical Nurse. She had always wanted to be a nurse and took pride in the quality of care and compassion she was able to provide her patients. Part time jobs include working at Rosacker’s Floral Shop and doing laundry for a hotel. It was at Augsburg that Martha met Gerald John Peterson at a freshman student mixer scavenger hunt. (one of the things they had to find was a cat and bring it back, and most of them did! ).

Martha remembered sitting on the gym floor and meeting eyes with Ger thinking…”now here’s a guy to remember”. She soon learned he was a football player and “people really, really liked him. Kind of a big man on campus I guess”. Those were years full of forming amazing life-long friendships and memories. Five years later, on August 19,1955 they were married. Jerry and Martha honeymooned on Minnesota’s North Shore at Ben Fenstad’s Cabins and would return to the North Shore for many years, making it one of their family’s favorite vacation spots.

As newlyweds they moved to Chicago where Jerry attended North Park Seminary. They first lived in a children's home as house parents to 60 kids! They then moved on to a boys’ home for another year before getting an apartment at North Park where Martha commuted to a secretarial job. They soon welcomed their first daughter, Sarah Joy. Once ordained into ministry they moved to South Dakota to serve in two Covenant churches simultaneously in the towns of Stockholm and LaBolt. Martha helped play the organ and direct the choirs for both congregations. After a few years they moved to Minnesota as Ger was called to pastor the Anoka Covenant Church and again Martha played the organ and directed the choir while working as a pediatric nurse at Mercy Hospital. It was during this time that their second daughter Janene Ruth was born. Two years later Jerry began a career outside the church and in 1965 they moved to White Bear Lake, MN where they lived for 51 years.

It was there that Martha focused her time, talents and interests in creating a home filled with love, good food, service to others and of course, lots of music. There was ALWAYS music playing. Favorites included choral praise and worship, choirs, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana brass, barbershop quartets, Minnesota marching band, classics on pipe organ, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Following in their parent’s footsteps, Martha and Jerry centered their life around their faith in Christ, a solid church community, welcoming and refugee ministries, support of missionaries, Bible studies, Sunday school, Christian fellowship, and service. They began attending Parkview United Church of Christ in White Bear Lake where she played the organ and assisted in directing the choir. As Sarah was reaching confirmation-age they sought a strong youth ministry and landed at First Covenant Church of St. Paul. Ready to serve, Martha quickly plugged into the music ministry, directing the children’s choir in the production of “100% Chance of Rain”. During her last days in hospice she summarized her years at First Covenant by saying “It was a privilege God had given me to serve, in sanctuary choir, bell choir, Lucia singers, as music librarian, in children's ministry, Covenant Women, the Farnsworth children’s Wednesday nights, persecuted church, Hmong ministry and resettlement, and the Hmong Gift Shop with Corrine Pearson”.

Martha saw all opportunities to serve as a privilege. Her hobbies included vegetable and flower gardening and making delicious homemade meals with all the sides, including her Buttermilk bread, and desserts, often her butterscotch bars. Hosting family holidays and gatherings was a joy, wearing her apron, using her cut glass, candles, and fancy folded napkins to set the table for all. Martha ministered to neighbors, hosting Bible studies, bringing meals to those in need, stopping by for a visit, checking in on the phone and always praying. Handwritten verses were taped on the fridge and inside cabinet doors, and music was ready on the piano for a quick hymn or song.

Together Jerry and Martha raised daughters Sarah and Janene with unconditional love, strong faith in Christ, and a beautiful loving marriage, welcomed Eric and Bill into the family and celebrated grandchildren, and great grandchildren with pride and joy, always covering them in prayer and offering help, advice, and support. Despite years of health struggles and waning vision, she was an encourager, a listener, a pray-er, and put others before herself. It wasn’t a chore or an obligation. It was simply who she was.

Martha passed peacefully on May 14h, 2020 at The Pillars Hospice in Oakdale with her daughters at her side singing one of her favorite hymns.

We are grateful for the blessing of Martha Ethel, Mom, Grandma, and Great-Grandma, and we celebrate that she is reunited with her husband of 64 years, and her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Martha is preceded in death by her parents, Paul and Suzie Bozony, her brother and sister-in-law Milan and Patty Bozony, and her beloved husband of 64 years, Gerald “Ger” Peterson. Martha is survived by daughters Sarah (Eric Larson), and Janene (Bill Johnson), grandchildren Amy (Andy Freeman), Kurt Larson (Kaelyn), Zach Johnson (Emily), Nicole (Jakob Kounkel) and Lucas Johnson, and great grandchildren Simeon, Anna, Adelyn, Eloise, and Violet.

Memorial Service to be held on Saturday, June 3rd, 2023 at 2:00 pm at First Covenant Church of St. Paul, 1280 Arcade St.

Janene’s welcome for mom’s memorial service June 3rd 2023

Welcome! We are truly honored that you are here.

Three years, so long ago and yet like yesterday. So Why now?

Because Martha had planned this service back in 2013, and reviewed it with us a time or two since….but went over it in detail with Sarah and her last weeks in hospice… almost daily. Even though she knew with what was going on in the world at that time, this wouldn’t happen for a while. It was clear there was a purpose in this service, beyond remembering Martha Peterson. Because if you see her typed notes… it’s actually not about her. At all. It is about worship and praise, and remembering what is true. It is hope and assurance for any who have lost, or are lost. Her neatly typed plan is a reflection of her life.

It centers on faith in a God who is all loving, never changing and worthy of praise.

It is full of music and encouragement, just like her life.

And hymns galore, as she loved since a child, and from hymnals she often used for her evening devotions.

It is specific, well thought out and considerate of others.

While she wanted a full choir she repeatedly felt it was too much to ask or expect and didn't want it to be a burden for anyone. We assured her that just as she loved to sing in the choir, her fellow members would be honored to be part of this day. (this also added to the delay in service until the full choir was back in business)

Her love for pipe organ required the organ. She again was concerned about asking someone to play and knew that the organist here had left. So Cindy, we are so grateful you are here!… these are her specific words for you: “Whoever is playing the organ,(as she smiled and waved her arms), do not hold anything back. Let all the stops out!”.

She also did not want the screen used as it blocks the view and maybe some of the sound of the pipes or choir. Mom appreciated beauty everywhere she went and here, In the windows, the pipes and the faces and voices of the choir.

She did not want many pictures of herself, “No picture boards please, just a couple that I have chosen with a colorful sticker on the back.” Well would you believe that we have yet to find one single sticker on the hundreds of photos we have been going through?? It makes me wonder if she ever got around to that part of the plan… So we have tried to honor her with very few, BUT cheated a bit with a video montage because there are so many beautiful memories in those photos that are meaningful to us.

She loved flowers and color and setting a pretty table for guests. She specified how many and what types. Two bouquets and a single flower on each table.

The food was to be simple, but needed to provide nourishment and a treat for those who come.

“And maybe my butterscotch bars… I do love pie but that can get pricey”

As we have tried to honor her requests and know her heart behind it we have added a couple things to her plan. There will be some stories about her, and words of appreciation. While she never needed that or expected it WE do.

So thank you for being here, three years later, and thank you for the part you played in her life, whatever that was. Please know that she was thankful for you, definitely prayed for you and had you in mind even as she planned for this day.

And one last instruction from her. “If you are here, you better stand and sing with all you have got, really listen to the words, don’t hold anything back”.

So, in her own way, one last time, she is the director of the choir, and hostess at the table.

Words shared by Sarah

I want to share some of the things that characterized my mother, Martha Ethel Bozony Peterson and were important to her.

My mother’s relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ was foremost and the Bible was central to her life and thinking. Every book in her Bible contains yellow highlighted verses, through which, I trust, God spoke to her and that she wanted to note as she read, studied, and meditated on them. In addition to her involvement in Bible studies, she would often listen to teachers and preachers, like R. C. Sproul on the radio. In her final days, Mom told me that she wished that she had memorized more Scripture.

My mother depended upon God in prayer and prayed for others, including for those who are enduring persecution because of their unwavering faith in, and commitment to, Jesus Christ. When I prayed with and for her before I would leave her apartment and then each night at the Pillars Hospice House, she would frequently pray, as well, especially for me and our family.

Mom was always willing to listen and talk. She did so with understanding, patience, and encouragement. She and my dad treasured their friendships, faithfully keeping in touch with their friends over their entire lifetime. She humbly turned attention away from herself and onto others. Mom was grateful, rarely complained, and expressed appreciation right up until the end. Despite her complex health issues, she would thank her doctors, nurses, and care givers and ask them about themselves and their lives. We treasure her thoughtful cards, notes, and letters. Her sincere desire was to thank everyone who was kind and who wrote to her, especially after Dad died. I recently found cards that she bought and drafts of notes that she wrote, but was never able give to the intended recipients because of her declining health. Some of her words on behalf of herself and our family were: “ I want to express our heartfelt thanks for the ways in which you, as dear friends have supported and comforted us through your presence, friendship, words, and prayers.”

Mom was courageous and trusted in God all the way to the end. She bravely faced many circumstances and serious health issues, including cancer and the side effects of treatment, multiple heart issues, including congestive heart failure more than 100 eye injections for Macular Degeneration, living without her husband whom she loved so much, deciding to go to the hospital alone during the Covid shutdown, and then going through the valley of the shadow of death. I believe that her love for Jesus Christ and God, working through His Holy Spirit and His Word, along with a lifetime of trusting in Him and finding Him faithful, gave her that courage.

The last 26 days of Mom’s life that were spent in hospice were a gracious gift from God-precious and purposeful. She endured those days of physical limitations, fragility, weakness, suffering, and fear with courage, patience, and grace. God gave Mom clarity of mind and rich biblical and spiritual insight. She focused on what was most important to her, even as it took more effort and energy to talk or to open her eyes, because of her extreme fatigue, and she spent time in prayer. Her biblical priorities came through in her conversations, especially with her grandchildren.

When I talked to her about where she was going when she left this world, Mom would get a look of amazement on her face, and say with emotion, “Oh Glory!” She expressed that she was unworthy and undeserving of God’s love for her, of His salvation, of His forgiveness, and of the blessings waiting for her in the presence of the Lord Jesus. We agreed that none of us is worthy, but that her claim, and ours, is not in anything we have done or said, but only in what Jesus has accomplished through His sinless life, sacrificial death on the cross, and His victorious resurrection for all who repent and trust in Him. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. She would open her hands and repeat from the hymn, Rock of Ages, “Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling”.

Above all, Mom wanted to be sure that each member of her family had a genuine faith in Jesus and her prayer was “that they would always look to Christ for guidance in their lives as they mature”. She also emphasized the importance that each of us, especially her grandchildren, would remain faithful to Him to the end, even in trial and temptation. Mom knew that suffering and tribulation are coming and that those who follow Christ will be tempted and tried. She said that her heart’s desire and prayer were that we will all be with her and her Savior in the place He is preparing for His followers for eternity.

I want to be like my mother and to carry on the legacy that she gave us, but I fall so far short. When I told her of some of the ways that I want to be like her, her humble response to me was simply, ”Be like Christ.” I believe that in many ways my mother lived out the apostle Paul’s exhortation in his letter to the Romans in ch. 12 “Let love be genuine….Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor...be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality...Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.….give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all”

I miss Mom, especially the close relationship we shared, the times of honest sharing of our hearts, her constant love, understanding, and support, the comfort that I felt in her presence, her humor, her wise counsel, and her prayers, but I am grateful for the long life that she lived and that I was privileged to share with her. Above all, I thank God for what He did in Martha Ethel Bozony Peterson by calling her and giving her the gifts of repentance and faith in the finished work of Christ. That gives me assurance and cause to rejoice that she is free from this fallen world and from the body that she said was so heavy and tired. Her soul is in the presence of God, her Heavenly Father and Jesus, her Lord and Savior. She has begun to experience the promised “eternal weight of glory beyond comparison” described in II Cor 4:17. I pray that the ways in which she humbly followed Him in faith and lived out her loving devotion to, and worship of Him, will inspire us to seek, know, trust in, love, and follow Christ, as well. And may our conversations about her and our hope in what her soul is experiencing now be opportunities to courageously and joyfully share the source of that hope- the Gospel of the risen Christ, the only solid Rock.