Peter Leo Kraus

In Loving Memory
Peter Leo Kraus died unexpectedly at home in Salt Lake City on April 5 at age 51.
He is survived by his beloved wife, Kristin, to whom he had been married for almost 25 years. He is also survived by his brother, Andrew (Renea), niece Penelope, in-laws Ernest and Louise Borden, sister-in-law Sandra (Peter) Pickhardt, nephew Eliot, and nieces Jocelyn and Maya. He was preceded in death by his father, Leo Kraus, and his mother, Barbara Kraus Kessler (Chris).
Peter graduated from Florida State University with a BS ('91) and MLS ('93). He worked for 5 years at the New York Public Library. In 1999, he accepted a position at the Marriott Library at the University of Utah, where he was an Associate Professor. In that role, he tied together two of the passions in his life: teaching and government affairs. Helping students with research was a joy of his career. He was a true academic, partnering with colleagues throughout the university, attending conferences, and publishing in academic journals. In 2015, he was thrilled to take a sabbatical at St. Stephen's House at the University of Oxford, UK, which offered him academic growth and, more importantly, profound friendships with many individuals there and also at Pusey House in Oxford. Recently, he was very proud to have assisted the Utah Academic Library Consortium in its outreach with the Utah Legislature, and he enjoyed serving for many years on the board of the Utah Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. He was active in local politics and ran for a seat in the Utah Legislature in 2014 and 2018. Peter took great pleasure in traveling with Kristin throughout the U.S. and internationally. He was a zealous fan of college football, enthusiastically tailgating at Ute games and rooting for FSU, and he became a devoted supporter of the Green Bay Packers after his marriage. Peter made friends everywhere, welcoming people with fascinating conversation, his kind and generous heart, and his gregarious personality. His family and friends are comforted by knowing he lived each day of his life the way he wanted it.
A memorial celebration of life will be scheduled at a later date. Donations may be directed in Peter's memory to the Marriott Library at the University of Utah, to Americans for Oxford, or to the Humane Society of Utah.