Heather Athlyn Petersen of Eureka passed away on March 17, 2023 due to complications from breast cancer. She was 36 years old.

Heather was born on November 15, 1986 in Eureka, the younger of two daughters born to Michael and Melinda Petersen. She was named after her great grandmother, Athlyn. She attended Ridgewood Elementary School, Cutten Elementary School, Winship Junior High School, and Eureka High School, graduating in 2004. She and her older sister, Nicole, were close and grew up exploring the redwood forest near their home in Cutten and camped often with family. Heather loved basketball and played many years in the Hoopsters recreational basketball league. Every Friday when she was a child, Heather went to her grandparents’ home in Eureka, and when her grandparents moved to Willow Creek in 1995, she loved to spend school breaks with them, playing in the backyard and walking to the nearby Trinity River. She enjoyed playing video games and cooking. She created a chicken, broccoli, and rice dish that continues to be a family favorite and loved making pineapple upside down cake. She had a wonderful sense of humor and loved watching stand-up comedy specials. She was a beautiful girl and loved doing her and her friends’ hair and make-up. Every summer when Heather was a teenager, she would fly to Las Vegas to stay with her Aunt Kari and her cousins, David, Kara, and Danielle. She enjoyed traveling and went on cruises to Mexico, Canada, Catalina Island, and Disneyland with family. She had many close friends, but her best friend throughout her life was her next door neighbor, Sasha.

In 2014, Heather graduated with her cosmetology license from Frederick and Charles Beauty School in Eureka. Soon after, she got a job as a Hair Stylist at Regis Salon at the Bayshore Mall. She adored her dog, a Chiweenie named JuJu Bee, and never went anywhere without her. She loved teasing and spending time with her nephew and niece, Josiah and Daphne.

In 2019, Heather gave birth to her pride and joy, her beautiful little girl, Farrah Elaine. She named her after her mom, Melinda Elaine, who she was incredibly close. She doted on Farrah, playing games with her, doing her hair, and buying her the cutest clothes to wear. She would set up a kiddie pool in the backyard on warm days so Farrah could cool off and swim. They would bake cupcakes together, she taught Farrah how to ride her bike, and she would always play along when Farrah would cook imaginary food for her in her play kitchen. They loved dancing together to Baby Shark, The Floor is Lava, and the Freeze Dance Song. In December 2021, Heather was diagnosed with stage 4 inflammatory breast cancer (triple negative). She endured multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatments over the next year, but tried to continue living as normally as she could, continuing to go out and visit with her family and closest friends. She didn’t tell many people about her diagnosis as she never wanted anyone to worry. She passed away peacefully at home with her parents by her side.

Heather was always the life of the party and made many friends throughout the years. She was a very sweet, affectionate child who grew into an incredibly loving, kind, and hilarious adult. She would always go out of her way to help anyone who needed it, and always made people laugh. She was full of life and always made whoever she was with feel important and cared for. She touched so many lives, and she will be missed more than she ever could have known.

Heather is preceded in death by her grandparents, Dennis and Lorna Petersen, her grandfather, Charles Nichols, her step-grandfather, Jack Armstrong, her great grandmother, Athlyn Lawson, her uncle, Martin Nichols, and her best friend, Sasha Peters.

She is survived by her parents, Michael and Melinda Petersen, her daughter, Farrah Elaine Petersen-Log, and her sister, Nicole Petersen-Log (Joseph). She is also survived by her grandmother, Kathlyn Nichols, her nephew and niece, Josiah and Daphne Log, and numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.

The family wishes to thank the exceptional staff at Hospice of Humboldt for their kindness and continuous care over the past few months. Per Heather’s request, no celebration of life will be held, but please feel free to share your memories of her at www.lostcoastoutpost.com.

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