Peter Arnold Freund, DPM, was born in New York City in 1937. He died peacefully with his wife Desera Towle at his side at home in Missoula MT on February 16, 2021 at age 83, as a result of congestive heart failure. He was the second son of Arthur M. Freund, MD and Edna Rosenthal Freund.
When Peter was born, his family lived in the Bronx and then moved to Manhattan, New York, where he lived until he was 5. His father, (a GP) enlisted in the Army in 1942 and Peter and his family moved to Clearwater Beach, Florida, where his father was stationed as a surgeon in New Guinea, until the war ended in 1945. Peter still remembered seeing through the living room window back in Manhattan, the huge celebration, including the vast use of toilet paper, celebrating the end of the war.
He auditioned and was accepted into the Art Department of New York’s High School of Music and Art, leading to a minor career of Medical illustration, and as a professional drummer in a jazz band, which he loved. He graduated from Duke University in 1958, with a BA dual major of Zoology and Pre-Med. After he was drafted, he served 4 years in the Army and was given an honorable discharge. He moved to San Francisco to join his brother Curt. He then worked as a pharmaceutical sales rep for 4 years at Burroughs Wellcome, during which time he met and married Beatrice Brown. In 1964, he entered the California College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery in San Francisco and graduated in 1968 with additional degrees of a BS in Medical Science, and a doctorate in Podiatric Medicine. Peter completed his residency in the California Podiatry Hospital and Oakland General Hospital in 1969. He entered private practice beginning in San Francisco and later relocated to Redwood City, California. Peter was a dedicated father to his daughters, Debbie and Lisa, making a lovely home for them in Foster City in The San Francisco Bay Area. He was very proud of his girl’s accomplishments including graduating from college.
In 1994, Peter moved to Helena, Montana and continued practicing podiatry. Peter met Desera Towle there, whom he met on a blind date in 1997. They were married in 1999 and had a lovely wedding at the Klefner Ranch, outside of East Helena.
Peter liked to do small electrical projects and spent time with Desera up at her cabin in the Elkhorn Mountains. He enjoyed a good round of cribbage and was an avid mystery reader. Peter loved his conga drums and played them in various locations in Helena. He treasured his drums and was passionate about Latin music. Peter also wrote a Foot advice column for the Helena Independent Record for several years where people, including Desera, appreciated his wry sense of humor.
Peter’s health began to decline after moving to Montana and due to the numerous life-saving procedures and implanted hardware, many of his friends called him the “Million Dollar Man.”
He left behind his loving wife, Desera, and from his first marriage to Beatrice Brown-Hiner, two remarkable and outstanding daughters, Debbie Freund Shess and Lisa Freund Wolf, five terrific grandsons, Coleman, Tyler, Jackson, Dylan, and Ryan, and two wonderful son-in-law’s, Terryn Wolf and Zac Shess, all of whom live in California. Sadly, his departure also left his extremely important nephew and niece: Tim Freund and wife Tama and children Hannah and Adam, and Tammy Freund Traynor, her husband Brien, and their exceptional daughter Samantha, as well as his brother Curt’s widow, Joan Freund, and a wide circle of friends from podiatry school.
There will be a Committal Service at the Montana State Veterans Cemetery in Missoula MT at a later date. Funeral Arrangements are being made by Garden City Funeral Home, www.GardenCityFH.com