Svend Petersen

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Svend Petersen at St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, of heart failure at the age of 81. Svend will be fondly remembered and dearly missed by all, including his beloved partner Sharon Purdy of Toronto, son Erik (Kathrene) Petersen of Bowmanville, his daughter Fiona (Nigel) Cochrane of Vancouver and grandsons Dylan, Sam and Hunter Cochrane, along with his many friends and neighbours in Toronto and in the sailing community both here and in the US. Survived by his sister Karen Hann of Bristol, UK. Predeceased by his father Valdemar Petersen, mother Ingeborg Gärtner, his sister Hanne Brouwer, his brothers Jack, Per and Jens, and Margaret Duff (mother of Erik and Fiona).

Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, Svend immigrated with his family to Canada in 1955. Having grown up around his father's metal fabricating business in Denmark, Svend started work as a teenager installing commercial steel fencing, then over the next 35 years mobile storage systems, store fixtures, and finally his own proprietary steel shelving that he manufactured for major retail stores across Canada and the US. He was the penultimate entrepreneur, engaging in diverse ventures like The Cossacks restaurant, a hair salon and later Mobilityunlimited, an electric bike store. He was a brilliant product designer and a gifted problem solver with a very keen sense of fairness. Svend was a terrific project manager, well-organized and able to motivate people around him to want to do their very best.

Svend bought his first sailboat in the mid-1970s and became a champion sailor and fierce competitor, both on the race course at ABYC and in the Florida Keys.  He took up skiing and scuba diving in the late 1980’s. Together he and Sharon enjoyed skiing throughout North America and diving and sailing in the Caribbean, with a shared enthusiasm for travel and adventure.

In his first retirement he built a duplex in downtown Toronto in 1991, designed and built a 52’ catamaran (Errant) in 2001, then opened a mobility scooter and electric bike retail store in 2006. When he closed their store in 2015, Svend traveled the world with Sharon, on land and on water, keenly interested in those he met, engaging and questioning and making friends wherever he went.

Svend was a force to be reckoned with, loved to debate, was larger than life and twice as fierce but very tender and protective of those more vulnerable. He was generous with his time and talents, a mentor to many and a very loyal friend.

The Captain has left the bridge; the First Mate will carry on. He will be keenly missed.

Heartfelt gratitude goes to St. Michael’s Hospital and their Palliative Care team for their loving care and support. To honour Svend’s wishes he will be cremated and his ashes scattered at sea. A private Celebration of Life will be held in early January 2023.