David J. Petersen

David Petersen was born on September 20, 1955 to Ann Beatty and Philip Petersen in Providence, Rhode Island and was their first child. His siblings were Douglas and Martha. In 1958, the family moved to the Chicago area where he grew up. After high school, he followed his passion for music and moved to Hollywood, CA. There he studied music composition and worked hard on his piano and guitar skills. After a year or two in Hollywood, he moved to the East Coast where he attended a music college in Barrington, Rhode Island for a short time. Then Dave spent a couple of years in southern Indiana near his mom and step-father. Other places where he lived were Santa Barbara, California, Grand Junction, Colorado and finally Monument, Colorado. The moves were always to be closer to family.

A huge part of Dave’s life was his Faith in Jesus Christ. He asked Christ into his heart as a young man in his twenties, and it became a cornerstone of his life. He knew his Bible better than most all in his family, definitely better than Doug and Martha. He dealt with mental health challenges, in particular schizophrenia. This illness caused him to often withdraw and was his personal battle throughout his life. Music was always immensely significant. He spent much time writing and playing, mostly his guitar of which he owned many! He listened to music non-stop covering nearly all genres from Rock n Roll, Jazz to Classical also including Bob Dylan and of course the Beatles.

He will be greatly missed by his family, nieces, nephews and others with whom he came into contact like his friends from Bright Star. A common theme heard from so many was that Dave was an extremely kind man. In today’s world, that is worth a lot. We love you, Dave, so very much.