Rand-Wilson Funeral Home
As director of athletics at Dartmouth College from 1967-83, Seaver Peters was regarded as one of the nation's most highly respected intercollegiate athletic administrators.
Then, in his early 50s, Peters considered a career change. He resigned from Dartmouth in 1983 and spent a year studying to be an investment broker. After passing numerous tests and under the guidance of his good friend, Dana Hennigar, principal of a boutique investment firm (Burgess & Leith) in Boston, Peters opened an office in Hanover. His second career, as successful as the first that began at Dartmouth in 1959, spanned about 25 years and continued until he retired in 2008.
As he said, "I've had the benefit of living the 'good life' in and around Hanover and the Dartmouth campus."
Peters, who over the years resided in Hanover, Norwich and Wilder, Vermont, and most recently (2014-19) at The Woodlands retirement community in Lebanon and then at The Village at White River Junction, Vt., died peacefully on February 23, 2020 at age 87.
The man known to many as Pete was born August 10, 1932 in Melrose, Mass., the son of Paul and Elizabeth (Seaver) Peters. Given his mother's maiden name, he recalled, "She said I'd learn to like it."
He began playing hockey in the 1940s, played on a state and New England championship team at Melrose High School, and arrived at Dartmouth in 1950, joining his father (who attended the College soon after World War One) and many others on a well-worn path from Melrose to Hanover.
Under Coach Eddie Jeremiah, Peters and Hennigar would become captains of hockey in 1954 and 1955 respectively.
Peters graduated from Dartmouth in 1954. After service in the Air Force and three years in his father's business he returned to Dartmouth in 1959. He held administrative positions in athletics and the comptroller's office until 1967 when he succeeded Robert (Red) Rolfe, the great major league infielder, who had been Dartmouth's director of athletics since 1954.
Peters's tenure as athletic director was one of the memorable eras in athletics at Dartmouth.
The football team won eight Ivy League championships and, in 1970, a College World Series appearance.
In hockey, Dartmouth made trips to the NCAA "Frozen Four" in 1979 and 1980. Those teams were among the first to play in Thompson Arena that opened in 1975 and remains among the nation's best collegiate ice facilities.
Pete looked back with great pride on the introduction and development of the intercollegiate program for women's teams that evolved with the introduction of coeducation in 1972.
He served in several Ivy League and NCAA committee leadership positions, including being chair of the NCAA television committee in a period, the mid-to-late 1970s when the NCAA had control of all televised college football (ESPN was founded in 1979). The TV committee selected the games to be televised each weekend, a handful compared to the proliferation of TV games broadcast these days.
In the 1960s, Peters worked with a group of fathers to form the Hanover Youth Hockey Association. When Thompson Arena opened, he was among the founders of the Friends of Dartmouth Hockey. And, for a number of years he served as a director of the Hanover Improvement Society. As a Dartmouth undergraduate he became member of Phi Gamma Delta fraternity and the Sphinx Senior Society.
In 2010, in recognition of his many contributions to the sport, the New Hampshire Legends of Hockey recognized Seaver with induction in their builders category.
In 1956, Seaver married Sally Stanford. Together, they raised four children-Wendy, Scott, Gail and Michael. They divorced in 1977. She died in 2008.
In 1978, Seaver married Charlotte (Sally) Gile. They enjoyed over 30 years together until Sally died in 2011.
In recent years, Seaver's "significant other" was Jill Hennigar.
He is predeceased by his parents, two brothers, Frank and Paul, and his two wives.
He is survived by his children: Wendy (Jeff) Farnsworth of Enfield; Scott (Amy) of Hanover; Gail (Bob) Trottier of West Lebanon, and Michael (Marisa) of Stratham. Also, his two step-children: Dewey (Stacy) Gile of Arundel, Me., and Susan Gile of South Portland, Me.
He also leaves eight grandchildren: Ryan, Eric and Nicole Farnsworth; Ben and Tom Peters; Rob and Dan Trottier, and Angela Peters. And, two great-grandchildren: Dayana and MacKenzie Trottier.
A celebration of Pete's life will be held on Saturday, March 28, in Rollins Chapel on the Dartmouth campus. A reception will follow at the Hanover Inn.
Memorial donations in Seaver's name may be made to: Friends of Dartmouth Hockey, 6066 Development Office, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755.
The Rand-Wilson Funeral Home in Hanover is in charge of arrangements. To view an on-line memorial and/or to send a message of condolence to the family, please visit www.rand-wilson.com.
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