Fire Captain (ret.) Leland Albert Petersen

Fire Captain (ret) Leland Albert Petersen, 79, of Gilroy, died in the company of loved ones on January 8, 2022, in San Jose. He was born the son of Leland S. and Pauline W. Petersen on July 1, 1942 in Santa Clara.
Petersen graduated Senior Block B member in 1960 from Bellarmine College Preparatory. On May 24, 1964 he married Sandra Lee Parker in Placer County and together they raised three children. In 1967 he earned an Associate degree in Fire Science and in July of that year became a fireman for the Santa Clara County Central Fire District. He retired as a Captain for the San Jose Fire Department on October 3, 1996. Throughout life and until his passing, Petersen was an accomplished rancher and recognized horseman with a passion for showing, breeding and raising quarter horses.
Petersen is preceded in death by his father (1948), mother (1982), brother Eric J. Petersen (2016), maternal grandparents Paul A. Ganshirt (1964) and Gladys M. Savory (1980), and paternal grandparents Peter H.W. Petersen (1963) and Anne Nielson (1967). He is survived by his wife of 58 years, step-daughter Susan C. Balster-Hoenck, daughter Lisa K. Amador, son Leland P. Petersen, grandchildren Heather A. Kennedy, Leland A. Petersen, Tiffany Ann Brownie, Robert B. Hoenck, and great grandchildren Dani-Leigh Kennedy and Abigail Brownie.
A memorial to honor his life and 30-year service to the community will be held at the San Jose Fire Museum located on 201 N. Market Street, on Saturday, February 12th, at 11 a.m.