Obituary for Tristan da Cunha islander Peter Repetto, who passed away on the 1st May 2023, aged 87.

Obituary for Peter Repetto

Peter Leslie Repetto passed away on the 1st May 2023 aged 87 years. Peter was born on 12th August 1935, the second of ten children born to Joe and May Repetto. He worked in the Island Store before the volcanic eruption leading to evacuation to the UK in 1961.

Peter married Patricia Swain on 16th January 1962 in St Mary’s Church, Bletchingley, Surrey, close to Pendell Camp where the islanders were then staying. Peter worked repairing watches while he was in the UK.

On return to Tristan the couple went on to have two children, Noelene Swain who lives on Tristan with her husband Neil and Desiree Repetto-Mansell who currently lives in the Falkland Islands with her husband Philip. He is also survived by his three grandchildren Wayne Swain, Glenda Rogers and Eugene Repetto and six great grandchildren all of whom live on Tristan.

Peter worked in the lobster processing factory as a treasury clerk, and later returned to help run the Island Store. The experience he gained in the UK was very valuable and he started fixing electronic devices for the islanders, radios, televisions and watches were just some of the items bought to him to restore. Peter was also a great music lover and his amplifier and decks were in high demand at dances where he would DJ. He was also the island projectionist, screening feature films every Monday evening at the Prince Philip Hall before TV sets were used in homes in the 1980s.

Peter was a very sociable kind hearted man and you would often see him making his rounds on a Sunday visiting his family. He loved spending time at his camping hut and thoroughly enjoyed the holiday and weekends when he could spend the weekend camping with his wife, fishing on the beach and working in the potato and vegetable patches.

Patricia and her family would like to thank all those for their support and care provided throughout his illness. They would also like to thank everyone for the calls and messages of condolence.