In 1965, Peltier relocated to Seattle, Washington.[1] Peltier worked as a welder, a construction worker, and as the co-owner of an auto shop in Seattle in his twenties.[20] The co-owners used the upper level of the building as a stopping place, or halfway house, for American Indians who had alcohol addiction issues or had recently finished their prison sentences and were re-entering society.[20] However, the halfway house took a financial toll on the shop, so they closed it.[20]