The bottom of John’s skate, stick, and helmet setup in honor of his son Andrew at the Marshfield Ice Arena.
MARSHFIELD, Wis. (WAOW) – The Marshfield hockey team celebrated a dominant 7-1 victory over Medford, marking the end of their regular season. The night was more than just about securing a win; it was a heartfelt tribute to a fallen soldier connected to the community.
The team continued an annual tradition that began three years ago to honor Andrew Peters, a Marshfield native who was killed while serving in Ukraine on February 16, 2023.
“Even to this day it has been three years now and we are just floored by the generosity and kindness shown by the folks of Marshfield,” said Andrew’s father, John Peters.
Andrew graduated from Marshfield in 2012 and immediately joined the United States Army. He served in Afghanistan in 2014 and was honorably discharged in 2016. Feeling his service was incomplete, Andrew went to Europe to serve with the International Legion of Defense of Ukraine.
When the community learned of Andrew’s passing, one couple decided to take action to honor him.
Marshfield community member, Lisa Schindler, said her husband, Mitch, “saw an article in the paper when Andrew had passed away, and felt called to contact the Peters family and help in any way that we could.”
Mitch and Lisa, who have five children enrolled in the Marshfield Youth Hockey Association, partnered with Andrew’s parents, John and Heather, to honor him through the game he loved.
“He started skating at the age of two, so he played youth hockey up until about the pee-wee level,” said John.
Andrew was an avid hockey player in his youth and continued playing as an adult after returning from military service.
“He started playing with me in adult hockey, both the men’s and women’s teams, and did that right up until he decided to leave for Ukraine,” said John.
All the posters from Andrew’s funeral were preserved, and everything displayed on game day was arranged by John.
The bottom of John’s skate, stick, and helmet setup in honor of his son Andrew at the Marshfield Ice Arena.
“You know how if a soldier dies in the military, they usually put the boots on the ground, the rifle in the sand, and the helmet on the butt of the rifle,” said John. “I decided to do one up with his hockey gear, skates, and helmet. I figured it is kind of a nice hockey twist to that.”
“When you bring together the hockey family with the military family and the family of faith and Christians, it brings a powerful force of support,” said Lisa.
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