Brice Peterson, Advocate Of Vanpool For Metro, UW

Brice Peterson, advocate of the VanPool for Metro Transit and the University of Washington, was a man of glorious contradictions. He seemed to thrive on them.

Mr. Peterson belonged to the American Civil Liberties Union, yet he supported the National Rifle Association, having enjoyed shooting and fine guns since he was a child.

A two-time winner of Montana's speech championship in high school in Missoula, the 6-foot-5-inch intellectual could debate any issue yet get physical with cross-country skiing, scuba diving and hiking.

Fit and active, he also loved beer brewing and New Orleans-style cooking, where he didn't spare the cream.

Mr. Peterson died Oct. 4 of heart failure in Atlanta. He was 32.

He had quit Metro and moved there a year ago to let his wife pursue her physician's-assistant studies. Finally, last month he landed a job as a transit specialist.

"I don't know any man who would do that for his wife," said his wife, Andrea Dunn. "I was in a dead-end job, ready to move on. I gave him the choice of our staying or moving. He wanted me to pursue my dream.

"He had so much energy. What attracted me was, he knew something about everything - not just male things like sports. And he wasn't arrogant about it."

When she introduced him to her mother, he was dressed in fatigues and "looked like a Nazi." It was tense. But he talked to her mother for more than an hour about cooking and recipes. That won her over.

For the wedding reception in 1992, Mr. Peterson and his friend Brett Smith brewed two kegs of beer. Both kegs were consumed in the first half-hour, said his sister-in-law, Carolyn Dunn of Seattle.

"I think of someone you could talk to about anything - relationships, cars, cooking, beer brewing, even religion," she added. "He could talk to any person, whether in the Navy or a nun or really into drugs, whatever."

It impressed her that Mr. Peterson was a good listener, easygoing, approachable and not judgmental. He had majored in psychology and human-resources management at the UW, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1986.

He landed a job at Metro, where he helped customize ride-sharing services and managed the formation of the new Metro VanPool groups. He was involved in the Boeing 777 project's Employee Relocation Transportation Program, the UW U-Pass VanPool Program, KIRO-TV's Celebrity VanPool Project and the Oil Smart Campaign.

"He worked briefly on the labor team at Metro," said Mr. Peterson's brother, Greg, of Carlisle, Mass. "He had a way of calming people and was good at helping people discover answers for themselves. He was a mediator and could see all sides of any issue."

His wife said he was passionate about car-pooling, "yet he loved to hop into his car and go somewhere. He was fit, but he smoked. He rarely got mad, but when he did, it was over silly things, like my taking his cheese sandwich as a joke."

Other survivors include Mr. Peterson's parents, Donald and Ann Peterson of Missoula, Mont.; a brother, Roger, of Vancouver, Wash.; and nieces, Katharine and Amanda Peterson, of Carlisle, Mass.

Services have been held. Remembrances may be sent to Brice J. Peterson Memorial Fund, c/o Atlanta Regional Commission, 3715 Northside Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30327.