CVHS teacher and coach Peter Brewer remembered

Friends and family of former CVHS teacher and coach Peter Brewer remembered him as ambitious, diligent, and witty. He left a mark on many people and is sure to be remembered. 

“Coach Brewer was the hardest worker I’ve ever met. He was always here on time, he stayed for the whole meet, he stayed after the meet, he did all the results, he knew everyone’s names, every event of the kids. He was my inspiration as a coach when I first started,” said Dino Cardiasmenos, Brewer’s long-time friend and current CVHS track and cross country coach.

Brewer died suddenly of a heart attack on Feb. 19 at age 69. He touched many people in his lifetime, being an English teacher at CVHS for 33 years, and a track and cross country coach for 40 years. Brewer won a USATF Coaches Legacy Award in 2021. Back in 2016, Brewer was awarded the California Coaches Association NorCal Coach of the Year award as well. Brewer has many accomplishments attached to his name, all very well earned.

Barbara Andersen, who not only taught and coached alongside Brewer, but was also coached by him growing up said, 

“My favorite thing about Coach Brewer is how he remembered every single athlete, and there are thousands of them,” said teacher Barbara Andersen, who not only taught and coached alongside Brewer, but was also coached by him in her youth. “He was all about kids and athletes which was super cool.” 

Brewer has been said to be very motivational, in his own ways. “His vocabulary was amazing,” Anderson said. “He was able to kind of yell at an athlete, like if they were late or something. He would let them know in his own way that it was not appreciated, and most of the time no one knew what he was saying anyway, because he spoke in such a language where we would all look at him like, ‘I think he’s mad because we’re late, but we’re not sure what he just said.’ He just had a really impressive vocabulary, and he wouldn’t use it in a show-off way, that’s just how he spoke.” 

The way that Brewer coached was very unique, but it must have been effective for he led CVHS track and cross country teams to 101 Hayward Area Athletic League team championships in 25 years. 

On Feb. 27 an event was held at Canyon Middle School in Brewer’s honor. Over 100 alumni and former athletes of Brewer ran the Canyon race course for him. It was a chance for everyone to get together and reminisce on the lost coach and friend. 

“Today was good, it was very impromptu. It was really sudden, but I think it was great how in just a week everyone was able to come together and people were able to reach out. He coached over four decades, so there were people here from the class of ‘22, and also the class of ‘84, so just that span is amazing. That’s what I liked the most. It really made me happy to see how many communities and how many different people this was able to reach,” said Peter Brewer Jr., Coach Brewer’s son. 

There will be another 5k run held at Lake Chabot on April 3 at 1 p.m. in honor of Brewer. This event would be a great chance to show your support to Brewer and his family. 

Brewer was considered a friend and family to many around him and still is. His name is guaranteed to never be forgotten.