Eugene Gene P. Peters, age 83, of 715 Nebraska Ave. SW, Huron, died Wednesday, June 30, 2004, at the Huron Nursing Home. His Memorial Mass will be at 11:00 AM Saturday, July 10, at the Church of the Resurrection with Father Donald Imming officiating. Military Rites will be by the Huron Veterans Council. (An invitation is extended to join the family in the Church Fellowship Hall immediately following the Memorial Service.) Eugene Paul Peters was born on November 25, 1920, to Paul and Nora (London) Peters in Colome, SD. After graduating from Colome High School in 1939 he worked as a bartender, linotype operator, and railroad section hand in Colome; a school bus driver and custodian in Cheyenne, WY; and was assigned to a CCC Camp near Chamberlain. During WWII he enlisted in the U.S. Army, and after completing OCS at Camp Hood, TX, he served as a 1st Lieutenant in the 806th Tank Destroyer Battalion. He was honorably discharged in 1946. In 1946 Gene was recruited as a student by Huron College where he played football as a triple threat man. He was the leading ball carrier, passer and punter. He earned All Conference honors two years, was recommended for Little All American by the conference coaches, and was named by Bob Daniellson as one of the two best athletes he ever coached, the other player being Doug Eggers. After receiving his Bachelors Degree in 1949 he returned to Colome to teach and coach football. In 1951, encouraged by his mentor, Dr. Fred Plachy, he attended Colorado State College of Education in Greeley, Colorado, earning a Masters Degree in 1952. On December 20, 1947, while still a student at Huron College, he married Virginia JoAnne Viereck in Colome, SD. They had five children, Kathleen, Susan, Ann, Mark, and Todd, and were devoted to each other for over fifty years. Following a brief stint as an insurance salesman for Equitable Life & Casualty Insurance Co in Longmont, CO, he returned to Huron where he taught mathematics at Huron Junior High School and Huron High School from 1954 until his retirement in 1983. He also coached football and basketball from 19541962. He was head football coach from 19571962 and was named Coach of the Year by the South Dakota Sportswriters Association in 1960. In 1981 he won the Meritorious Service Award in the field of education from The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. Additionally, in 1992 he was inducted into the Huron College Hall of Fame as an athlete and in 1997 he was inducted into the Huron High School Hall of Fame as a coach. He was a longtime member of the Church of the Resurrection. During his lifetime, Gene was a loyal Notre Dame fan, loved hearing or telling a great story, enjoyed playing golf, card and word games, and was an avid reader. But his most important role in life was raising his family. All of his five children feel so blessed to have grown up being nourished by his wisdom, his guidance and his unfailing love. As a son, brother, husband, father, teacher, coach and friend, he touched and blessed innumerable lives in countless ways. We know all of Dads friends and family join us in celebrating this humble, gentle man, and in thanking God for sharing him with us during a long life well lived. He is survived by three daughters, Kathleen (David) Kobriger of Phoenix, AZ, Susan (David) Peterson of St. Paul, MN, and Ann Nelsen (Richard) Mitchell of Elk Horn, IA; two sons, Mark (Sandra) Peters of Maplewood, MN, and Todd (Sonja) Peters of Omaha, NE; nine grandchildren, Megan Kobriger, Todd Kobriger, Joshua Nelsen, Nick Peters, Alex Peters, Katelyn Peters, Eric Peters, Ryan Peters, and Mark Peters; one sister, Mary Shea of Winner, SD; three brothers, Jack Peters of Winner, SD, Roy Peters of Plankinton, SD, and Paul Peters of Sweet Home, OR; numerous cousins, nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Ginger on May 25, 1998; and one granddaughter, Jordan Nelsen.