Peter Kazak

Peter Kazak, 83, a retired engineer, died January 11, 2025, at his home in Carmichael, CA.

Pete was born in Vilnius, Lithuania, on June 21, 1941, as Petras Kazakevicius. With his parents and twin sister Aldona, he left Lithuania in 1944 and resided in a displaced persons camp in Germany prior to immigrating to the United States in 1949, where they were processed on a ship next to Ellis Island in New York. His mother, Vitalia, died months later in a car accident, and his father, Joseph, remarried Dorothy Kazak in 1951. Pete Kazak - as he became known after his last name was changed and he became a naturalized U.S. citizen - spent his childhood in Marcy and Rome, New York. He graduated from Rome Free Academy in 1959 and attended Harpur College of the State University of New York at Binghamton, prior to joining the U.S. Army, where, stationed in Hawaii, he worked as an electronics technician. Upon discharge, he completed a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from San Francisco State University and a master's in computer design from San Jose State University.

In 1970, he married Victoria Hansen, with whom he had two children, Kimberly (Michael) Greco of Placerville, CA, and Daniel Kazak of Rancho Cordova, CA.

Pete worked as an engineer for American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) and Pacific Bell in California and New Jersey. After retirement from AT&T, he obtained his private pilot's license and enjoyed flying for fun, worked as a licensed real estate agent, and was a Computer Science Instructor at American River College. Pete was talented with technology and computers, having built them in the 1970's and 1980's as the technology was evolving. He always shared generously in his technical skills, patiently helping family and friends with computer related questions.

In retirement, he traveled extensively to China, the Galapagos, Ecuador, and Peru. In 2009, he married his wife, Beatrice. They enjoyed many trips to Alaska, spending months with his twin sister Aldona, and traveling in their fifth wheel to many national and state parks. He enjoyed managing and working on his rental properties, photography, home improvement projects, and politics, including spending many hours at the California State Fair's Republican booth.

In addition to his children and wife, Pete is survived by five grandchildren: Katerina, Maddox, and Kadin Greco, and Danielle and Brighton Kazak; his former daughter-in-law, Laura Siegert; his twin sister, Aldona Kouremetis, and her husband Tom of Kodiak, Alaska; his sister, Anne, her wife Chris Coburn, and their son Rayne Kazak of Havertown, PA; and his step-daughter, DeAnna Torres of Fair Oaks, CA, and her children, Joshua, Rachel, and Jonathan. He was predeceased by his parents and stepmother.

An astral ascension ceremony will be held in Pete's honor on January 24, 2025, at 2:00 PM at the Ananda Center of Sacramento, located at 10450 Coloma Rd, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670. All are welcome to join his family in celebrating his life and legacy.

In honor of Pete's memory, we encourage those who wish to contribute to make a small donation to the Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Ancil Hoffman Park, a place he loved visiting during his daily walks.

Donations can be made online at: https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=E188973&id=1

Your support will help preserve the beauty of this special place that meant so much to him. Please select In Memory of, and type in Peter Kazak.