Memories of Peter

Messages of sympathy and memories of Peter may be sent to
memories-of-peter@ucdavis.edu.
If you wish to have your message included on this page, please let us know.

Peter was one of my academic advisors at UCDavis. He was insightful and encouraging in that role. He could be scientifically critical about my work, but my meetings with Peter typically seemed to end with a sense of optimism about the next steps to take regarding my research project and recommendations about who was playing at the Palms that weekend. He was someone who combined admirable and likeable in one person. Whenever the topic of his family came up, it was obvious that he was thrilled and grateful for the presence of Marilyn and Mimi in his life. My condolences to all of his family and friends. I feel so fortunate that Peter was a part of my Davis experience.

Tim Fagan
UCDavis PhD, 1997

When I first came to UC Davis, Peter was my supervisor for the month - he was just about to retire. Even retired, he was more than happy to help me out with words of wisdom or knowledge from his long career - he was very generous with his time, and often had a dog with him to pet for emotional support. Working with Peter on the microprobe was a joy, he had such a good time doing it. It felt like it was the candy shop for his inner child. He had a wonderful laugh. I have a deep gratitude for his mentorship during my early career. He would relentlessly cheer me on, cheer me up when I was down...

And that was just a tiny slice of Peter. He will remain an inspiration to me always.

Nick Botto
Former Microprobe Specialist for UC Davis Earth and Planetary Sciences