Gustave & Frances Peyser

Gus and Fran Peyser may not have been international celebrities, but in Leonia, they were known by virtually everyone who lived there from the 50’s through the 80’s. They helped shape the spirit and values of the town and modeled what it means to be a good citizen and good neighbor.

Gus attended Leonia public schools from Kindergarten through High School, then joined the Navy as a Corpsman to serve during the Korean War. He and Fran, who was a Navy Nurse, met and after the war they married and moved back to Leonia where they raised their four children, all of whom attended Leonia schools and New Jersey state colleges. They built a custom home at 7 Winthrop Place in the early 1960s, when land was still available. The family were all active members of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church on High Street and then, after a church merger, of Holy Spirit Lutheran Church.

Gus and Fran participated in the town’s volunteer organizations and served in local government where they helped shape Leonia into the town everyone wanted to live in.  Gus was a member of the City Council, the Board of Education, and Leonia Volunteer Fire Department. He also was a Boy Scout Leader of Troop 191, one of his fondest memories of Leonia. Fran was the nurse at Anna C. Scott School in the 1970’s, then later at Leonia High School in the 80s and early 90s. She was President of the Leonia Volunteer Ambulance Corps (and a member for over 25 years), a Commissioner of the Leonia Recreation Commission, and active in the Women’s Club of Leonia. While raising her children and working, Fran received her master’s degree with highest honors and became the first Nurse Practitioner in the state of NJ in 1979.

 At their respective funerals, speakers commented on the Peyser’s selflessness and their commitment to their community. In Leonia, Fran and Gus put values first and led by example; they made lifelong friends and had fun living their best life in a town that provided their family with thousands of wonderful memories.