Dr. David M. Peterson

Dr. David M. Peterson, 72, of Florence, SC, died on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at his home in Surf City, NC.  A memorial service will be held at Francis Marion University in the Chapman Auditorium at 1:00pm on Saturday, June 10.  The service will be preceded by a reception on campus at Wallace House beginning at 11:30am.

Dr. Peterson was born on December 21, 1944 and grew up in Manchester, England, the son of the late John Nicholas Peterson and Kathleen Griffin.  He received his Bachelor of Science in Physics in 1966 from London University and earned a Ph.D. in Physics from North Carolina State University in 1973.  After a brief teaching stint at Appalachian State University, Dr. Peterson accepted an offer to be a faculty member in the Physics program at Francis Marion College in 1979.  At Francis Marion, he and the late Lynn D. “Skip” Hendrick co-founded the health physics major and the physics major.  He was named a Distinguished Professor in 1995.  Dr. Peterson became department chair in 2000 and served in that position until 2016.  Under his leadership, the department grew significantly, adding programs in Astronomy and Industrial Engineering along the way.  In 2003 he was appointed to South Carolina’s Governor’s Nuclear Advisory Council on which he served until his death.

Dr. Peterson was revered by his students as a professor who demanded excellence and professionalism but was also one of the most patient tutors on campus.  One of his favorite activities was teaching students about x-ray and gamma ray spectroscopy in the nuclear laboratory he helped design.  He was a careful thinker, who never rushed to judgment.  The mentorship he provided to faculty both inside and outside of his department will have an impact on the FMU campus for years to come.  His friends and loved ones admired his quick wit and his genuine kindness.

David loved playing the game of golf.  And perhaps attributable to the rugby experiences of his youth, he was the consummate golfer.  Weather, course conditions, hazardous play (as in reptiles), and playing partners were all in the mix to challenge him – and his slowly achieved success was in the completion of the round.  He relished the companionship he found in friends and fellow golfers at the Country Club of South Carolina, Hickory Knob, Callawassie Island, and Topsail Island.

David had a passion for music.  In his earlier years in Florence, David played in the rock band Spare Parts with several other Francis Marion faculty.  However, his longest tenure as a musician came as a violinist in the Florence Symphony Orchestra where he also served as a musician’s representative on the FSO Board. 

David enjoyed traveling, particularly to Ireland, the birthplace of his mother, and he treasured recent trips to Hawaii and Spain with his wife.  Always known as a lover of life, David’s joy reached new levels upon meeting Cathy Birmingham.  That his golf clubs and violin bow received less attention late in life is testimony to the love he had for Cathy.

David is survived by his wife, Cathy Birmingham, his stepdaughter, Anna Snyder, and his sister, Angela Bowey of New Zealand.  In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the David Peterson Scholarship Fund, care of the FMU Education Foundation.