BBBTV12 Serving Anderson, Roane, and Morgan Counties
Johnathan Benjamin Peters, II, 70, of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, passed away quietly in his sleep at home on August 29, 2026.
Born on March 1, 1956, in Oak Ridge to Johnathan and Shirley Peters, John was the fraternal twin brother of Joie Fritts, his surviving sister. John and Joie grew up in Oak Ridge, leaving it to attend the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and returning later to pursue careers. John’s and Joie’s families have maintained a strong family bond throughout the years.
John graduated Oak Ridge High School in 1974, earned a B.S. degree in education in 1979 at UTK and later earned a M.S. in 1992 at UTK. Beginning his career in the field of construction engineering at Y-12 National Security Complex in 1979, John joined a team that led infrastructure transformation, retrofitting and modernizing World War II-era structures to meet the changing needs of the Y-12 site. His career developed as his education and interest in health and safety advanced. As a health and safety engineer at Y-12, John ensured site compliance with OSHA standards to support such work as critical infrastructure and alarm safety systems, safety compliance with environmental cleanup, and later facility deactivation. John retired from Y-12 in 2011 and remained in Oak Ridge. Living a life of quiet community service, John was always ready to step in to help a neighbor, friend, or stranger without ever expecting anything in return.
His compassion and generosity were mingled with a fun-loving joy that was contagious. The best example of this came every Christmas for more than 10 years when, wearing his red velvet Santa suit, John would stand at the bottom of his driveway and wave holiday greetings to everyone going by. Cars would stop to let children talk to Santa and some would even bring cookies or other treats for Santa. Everyone was rewarded by his big smile. He also was Santa for the local Boys Club and for his church, First United Methodist’s Angel Tree program. Year-round John gave food, sports equipment, and school supplies generously to the Boys Club. The pleasure of being outdoors was instilled in John as a young man and stayed with him throughout his lifetime.
As a committed outdoorsman, he was part of the Tennessee Bass Federation and its local chapter where he competed in bass tournaments that attracted sometimes more than 100 people from Middle and East Tennessee. Likewise, John was a skilled hunter of turkey, deer, and duck. He found great peace in the woods, typically sitting up in a tree patiently waiting for the perfect moment, enjoying the stillness and beauty of nature.
Above all, John was a family man. He was devoted to his family, specifically his wife Arnetta (formerly Arnetta Hatfield of Kingston) of 43 years and their son Benjamin, whose baseball games he supported without fail from Little League through High School and then Maryville College. This devotion continued with his grandchildren, Everly and Luke.
John was preceded in death by his parents, Johnathan and Shirley Peters, and by his sister, Jackie Stroh.
John is survived by his wife Arnetta Peters, son Ben (wife Katie Peters), grandchildren Everly and Luke Peters, twin sister Joie Fritts (husband Wayne Lawless), sister-in-law Brenda Kimmel, brother-in-law Jimmy Hatfield (wife Jan Hatfield), 9 nieces and nephews, and 18 great-nieces and nephews.
The receiving of friends and celebration of life are scheduled for Thursday, September 3 at First United Methodist Church Oak Ridge. The receiving of friends will occur from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm, and the service will follow. A burial will occur at 10:00 am on Friday, September 4 at Oak Ridge Memorial Garden.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Boys and Girls Club of Oak Ridge or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
