A Celebration of Life: Memorial Service for the Rev. Canon S. Suzanne Peterson

Friday, January 8, 2021 at 10:00am (Central)

Bishop Alan Scarfe invites family, friends, and colleagues to attend the service via Zoom from around the world. Email diocese@iowaepiscopal.org for connection information. Or, if you prefer to watch via YouTube, the stream link is below:

The Rev. Canon Sally Suzanne Peterson, 72, died December 30th due to complications following a heart attack in Des Moines. She leaves behind a community of friends and family that literally spans the world.

Suzanne was born and raised in Bradenton, FL, the daughter of Harry Peterson, Jr. and Mildred (Romine) Peterson. Following graduation from Manatee High School, she attended Florida State University and pursued a higher calling by enrolling in Virginia Theological Seminary. After graduation, she accepted a job as an assistant to the Rector for Christian Education at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Des Moines, Iowa. At that time, women were not ordained in the Episcopal Church. But she had found a home in the church and its mission of peace and justice, so she quietly pursued that possibility and she was the first woman in the Diocese of Iowa to be ordained to the transitional diaconate on December 18, 1976 by Bishop Walter C. Righter. In 1977, she became one of the first women in Iowa to be ordained as an Episcopal priest. Suzanne served for many years as Assistant Priest at St. Paul’s, Des Moines. She served as the statewide program coordinator for the Iowa Interfaith Agency for Peace and Justice from 1983-1991.

Suzanne's service to The Episcopal Church included serving as a Deputy to General Convention, the House of Deputies Commission on the State of the Church, the Standing Commission on Peace, and the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations.

Her journey took her to South Africa for 17 years, working in various positions, including assisting parish priest and Sub Dean of the Cathedral in the Diocese of Grahamstown. She was the first woman priest to be licensed to minister as a priest in the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, at the invitation of David Russell, Bishop of Grahamstown at that time. She then served in the office of Archbishop Thabo Makgoba in Cape Town as Public Policy and Advocacy Officer for the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and as Correspondence Manager for the Office of the Archbishop. Suzanne traveled extensively throughout South Africa and Latin America in her ministry for peace and justice.

Suzanne returned to the United States in 2013 and became Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Waterloo. She has served the Diocese of Iowa as a member of the Commission on Ministry, the One World One Church Commission, in ecumenical ministry, in peace and justice ministry, and most recently as the Diocesan Global Missioner. Following retirement, she moved back to Des Moines.

She is preceded in death by her parents. Survivors include her brother Harry Peterson, III (Cindy) of Bradenton, FL, along with nieces Faith (Ozzie) Mejia, Anna (Nathan) Smith, nephew Jacob Peterson, two great nephews and one great niece. She also leaves behind her beloved four legged companion Thandi, a black labrador that eats tv remote controls.

Due to COVID-19, services will be private but can be viewed online Friday, January 8th at 10 a.m. from the Cathedral Church of St. Paul. Friends, family, and colleagues can participate in the service via Zoom by emailing diocese@iowaepiscopal.org for connection information. The service will also be streamed via www.iowaepiscopal.org. Online condolences will be welcomed here.

Memorial contributions can be made to the Canon Suzanne Peterson Memorial Fund for Justice and Peace/Episcopal Diocese of Iowa.

But perhaps the best way to honor her lifelong efforts would be to respect and love each other, in the name of justice and peace.