Erik Carl Peterson

12-14-93 to 2-26-22

We are all saddened by the sudden loss of, Erik Carl Peterson. Loving son, brother, nephew, grandson, and friend to many. He is survived by his loving parents, Tammy and Carl, and sister, Ashley. He leaves behind aunts and uncles, Christine and Bill Hart Sr, Tina and David Crawford, and Terry and Lisa Winegar. Erik’s many cousins include Amanda and Jordan Crawford, Allysa Winegar, and Megan, Diego and Sofia Carrasco. Also, Bill and Amy Hart, Jennifer and Nathan Kacur, Mary and Mark LeHew, Britta McPherson, Kristin Peterson, and Genene Ventimiglia. Erik is also survived by his grandmother, Alice Winegar, with whom he shared a very close and loving bond. Grandma always said that Erik was the sweetest thing and always smelled so good! He was preceded in death by grandparents, William Winegar, Carl Sr, and Mary Peterson. He will be missed by many other family members and friends.

In addition to his family, we can’t forget to mention Erik’s beautiful cat “son”, Winston, who will very much miss Erik’s constant love and attention. Winston was, pretty much, Erik’s soul mate and behaved more like a dog than a cat. He would jump up to look out the window as soon as he heard Erik’s car pull up. It was very cool to witness a cat do such things as he did for Erik. Please keep all of Erik’s family and Winston in your healing prayers.

Erik was born in Potomac, Maryland where he graduated from Winston Churchill High School in 2012. Erik was known to be a very independent thinker, creative, extremely kind and compassionate, and had a huge heart. He had many interests and passions and held strong convictions in his beliefs. Above all, was his great love and passion for family. He was an old soul who appreciated being with family as was evident in how he always greeted everyone with his huge, infectious smile and a great big heartfelt ‘Erik Hug’. Erik’s smile seemed to scream ‘I love you’. He never left an event or occasion without saying goodbye and giving that same big, warm hug. He would say ‘I love you and can’t wait to see you again!’ He will be remembered for this, his warm heart, kind green eyes, and his happy, carefree manner.

Erik had his own unique style and marched to the beat of his own drum. He had a look and an attitude that was ‘all Erik’ and one of a kind. From the way he dressed to his many colorful hair styles and piercings, Erik was truly in a class of his own. Another great passion was his tattoos. Erik put so much thought and attention to detail, when choosing them. Each tattoo had a well thought-out, deep-rooted meaning. All these wonderful traits, looks and feelings, are what embodied Erik and made him so lovable and unforgettable.

Erik’s interests were many starting at a young age. He was a very talented water skier and snow boarder. We are sure that this was due to him watching his father, Carl, water ski off the back of their boat for years at Lake Anna. The family spent many great times there during Erik’s childhood. Erik always wanted to make his dad proud in all things, but for sure, with jet skiing and water skiing. Erik was an all-around athletic person that could master anything he tried while making it look easy and natural. As he got older, Erik discovered his passion of cars which led him to his career as a mechanic and something he truly loved. He gained many great car buddies that loved him and shared his same passion of Irregular cars and drifting. Erik’s mom, Tammy, was always there to cheer him on and to support him in sports, life, and anything that Erik did. He often spoke of her unwavering love and support and knew that she was always open to listening to his ideas, dreams, and anything that mattered to him.

Brotherly and sisterly love- Erik and Ashley were each other’s rock! They were always there to listen to and support each other. They worried about each other and have a special bond that will never be broken. We know that Erik will forever be watching over her. Ashley loved Erik very much!

Thankfully, Erik was able to travel and see parts of the world that really made him happy. He traveled to Europe a few years ago, and recently out West in the United States.

Erik loved ‘Erik’s kind of music’ and was one of the best on knowing how to chill and enjoy the moment. He even composed his own music beats, along with his own vocals, which was very cool! Some of our greatest memories and laughs were of Erik’s posts on social media. Those memories and all the others are what will forever bring smiles to our faces when we think of him. He will be greatly missed by all but the one thing that we can all agree on is that Erik would want everyone to celebrate his life and not mourn and be sad for too long. Instead of tears and sadness he would want to be thought of with smiles, laughter, and tears of joy, and to remain a happy memory for all. One of his favorite tattoos was in memory of his relatives that have passed before him and it read, “Don’t Mourn, Celebrate”. He had another tattoo with the phrase “Another Day In Paradise”. These are messages and motivations that we will try to live, going forward, to make him proud.

Let us all, please, honor Erik in the way that he would want. Rejoice and celebrate Erik with smiles and laughter when we think of him or notice a vacant chair at family gatherings or with friends at a car meet. We should speak about him and to him as if he is here with us. We will joke and laugh and tell great stories about the wonderful times that we shared with him. We will say, ‘cheers to Erik’ and will never forget this very special gift that we were given. Erik, until we all meet again, we love you and miss you more than you will ever know. We will remember you and pay tribute to you and your life, always.

We’ve loved, we’ve laughed, we’ve cried. We will love you forever and ever!

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*****Friends may call at DeVol Funeral Home, 10 East Deer Park Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20877 on Saturday, March 12, 2022 from 2 to 4 pm

*****Friends may also call at St. Mark's Episcopal Church - Fairland , 12621 Old Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904 on Monday, March 14, 2022 from 2 to 4 pm with services to begin at 4 pm.

*************Correction on time. Please NOTE time for service to begin at 4 pm at St. Mark's Episcopal Church************

Interment will be private