Harry Peek

Harry Peek was a man cut from a different cloth, in a different era, a man of principle and passion, of character and charisma. He was a member of our Greatest Generation, a dedicated military man, and a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend. Harry was a man with an iron will and a heart of gold, a heart he shared with all who knew him.

Harry’s story began on a hot summer day in 1923, in the bustling city of Cincinnati, Ohio. Those were good days in this country, times of peace and prosperity, during the start of the Roaring 20s, and the Prohibition era. On August 15, 1923, Charles and Mabel (Freeman) Peek celebrated the birth of a baby boy, a son they named Harry.

Harry was the second of four children in the family, joining his big brother Allen, and his little siblings Audrey and Charles. His father was a funeral director at Weil Funeral Home in Cincinnati, while his mother cared for the kids and the home.

Eventually Harry went to live in the lovely little Northern Michigan town of Arcadia, high on the bluffs overlooking the blue waters of beautiful Lake Michigan. It was a wonderful place to grow up, and instilled in young Harry a lifelong love for the outdoors, making him a true sportsman.

Harry eventually attended Arcadia High School, where he fell in love with a beautiful young classmate named Maxine Johnson, who was two years his junior. Harry graduated in 1941, and after the darkening skies of World War II thundered upon our shores, Harry was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps.

Before he left for the service, Harry married his high school sweetheart, on January 17, 1942, in a little church wedding. He then returned to duty, where he trained to become a pilot. Over the next four years, Harry served all over, and developed a love for the service.

He and Maxine also started their family during the war, with the birth of their first of four sons, Harry Jr.

When the war ended, Harry reenlisted in the Air Force Reserves, and he and Maxine added to their family, as well. The couple celebrated the birth of two more sons, James and Dennis and later fostered a boy named Richard, all who made their father so happy and proud. Harry and his growing family moved back to Cincinnati to be near his father, where Harry attended mortuary school in the late 1940s. After graduating, Harry went to work with his dad for awhile, until his life and career took a different path.

In 1959, the family moved back to Arcadia, where Harry could be close to family, and the great outdoors he loved so much. He was a passionate outdoorsman, and loved to hunt and fish every chance he had. He hunted whitetail deer and small game, and fished for anything that swam in the water. He also took many great hunting trips over the years, even traveling out West to go Big Horn hunting in the desert. Harry was a great sporting companion to his friends and sons, whether it was hunting, fishing, or golfing, another of his loves.

Of course, Harry wasn’t all play and no work. In addition to his 30-year career in the Air Force, where he eventually rose to the rank of Major, Harry became a social worker for the State of Michigan, a job that led the family to move to Benton Harbor in the 1960s. Harry retired from the state in 1964, after a 20-year career in social work.

In 1972, Harry and Maxine moved to Spring Arbor, and they began to travel some, as well, usually in their travel trailer. But in 1978, Harry’s health began to decline, and he needed five bypasses. So the couple slowed down, and traveled less. In 1980, the couple moved to Kalamazoo, where Harry remained the rest of his days.

Harry found plenty to keep him occupied, of course. He was a man of many hobbies, and even after his health issues arose, he continued to be an avid outdoorsman (he could be stubborn that way). He also enjoyed reading about military history, watching sports on TV (he was a lifelong Tigers fan), and loved watching westerns, too, with his terrier, Judy, by his side. Harry also loved to play cards, whether with friends and family, or going to the casinos with his beloved wife.

Slowly, however, Harry’s health continued to fade. In 1991, he required three more bypasses, and then in the mid-2000s, he needed to go on dialysis, which lasted nearly three years. Despite his valiant efforts to improve, Harry eventually entered the Rose Arbor Hospice in 2008, where he sadly died on Monday, August 4, 2008, at the age of 84.

Harry was a good man, with a good life, a man full of principle and passion, of dedication and devotion. He was a proud veteran, a caring social worker, and a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend. Most of all, Harry was a man with an iron will and a heart of gold, and an example to all who knew him. He will be greatly missed.

Learn more about Harry view his Life Story film and visit with his family and friends on Thursday from 6:00 – 8:00 PM at the Life Story Funeral Home, Betzler-Kalamazoo 6080 Stadium Drive, 375-2900 where services will be held Friday 10:00 AM. Burial with full military honors will be at Ft. Custer National Cemetery followed by a luncheon at Fourth Reformed Church.

Harry was preceded in death by 2 brothers: Allen and Charles Peek. Surviving are his wife of 66 years, Maxine Peek; 4 sons: Harry Peek, Jr. of Grand Rapids; James (Sandra) Peek of Kalamazoo; Dennis (Joan) Peek of Custer and Richard Honyoust of FL; 6 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; a sister: Audrey Moffit of Jackson, MS. Please visit Harry’s personal web page at www.lifestorynet.com, where you can share a memory or photo, sign his memory book, or make a memorial contribution to Grand Rapids Home for Veterans.