On 5 May 2009, the clinical microbiology community lost one of it stalwarts, Peter Zwadyk, Jr., of Glendale Springs, N.C., at the age 68, after a year-long battle with melanoma.  Pete, as we all knew him, had his own special approach to death as he did to life hosting A Celebration of Life Party 3 days before his death.  At the party, Pete held forth in an easy chair surrounded by his many friends, colleagues, and family members, doing what he did best, teaching folks about melanoma and providing a lesson in how to live your life while facing imminent death.

Pete was born in Kansas City, Kans., to Peter Zwadyk, Sr., and Genevieve Wolcheski Zwadyk on 3 April 1941.  He attended Ward High School, received his undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas City in 1962 and his Master's of Science and Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Iowa in 1966 and 1971, respectively. Pete became a Diplomate of the American Board of Medical Microbiology in 1978.  I first got to know Pete during my clinical microbiology post-doctoral fellowship at UNC in the late 70s. I consider him one of my key mentors in clinical microbiology.  Pete was the director of the Microbiology and Immunology Laboratories at the Durham VA Medical Center as well as Associate Professor in Pathology at Duke University Medical School.  During my fellowship, Pete was kind enough to host me in his laboratory.  He had a patient-centric viewpoint of clinical microbiology. I learned many important lessons from him.  Perhaps the most important was how to conduct "plate rounds" for the residents and fellows on the infectious disease service.  For 30 years, students learned about KEE (how to remember the lactose fermenting gnrs) at Duke and for the past 25 years in my own lab.  He was masterful in understanding what level of detail physicians needed to appreciate about microbiology to effectively care for their patients.  He also was an influential and beloved presence as a microbiology course lecturer to almost two generations of Duke Medical students as well as a prolific contributor to Duke's "in-house" textbook, Zinsser's Microbiology.  He understood, better than almost anyone, that students are our legacy and that teaching allowed us to touch the future.

Pete was on the forefront of the regional clinical microbiology society movement that blossomed in the 1980s and continues to play an important role in the continuing education of clinical microbiologists, especially at the bench level.  Pete was a founder of the Southeastern Association of Clinical Microbiology and served it in almost every imaginable position including President and Chair of the Program Committee as well as being on the Board of Directors for 20 years.  Pete was a constant presence at the SEACM annual meeting.  He was the organization's "fixer" hosting the speakers, making sure the audiovisual and handouts were in order, and that the attendees' needs were being met.  If the discussion was moving a little slowly, he would ask the provocative question to get it going.  He cared deeply about his profession especially about the folks who did the bulk of this important work, the bench technologists.   It is fair to say that the profession has lost one of its greatest advocates in the southeastern United States.

Pete was not just a clinical microbiologist but a man of a myriad on interest who never lost his passion for learning.  Peter enjoyed fly fishing with the Triangle Fly Fishing Club, was a licensed private pilot, President of a photography club, and was dedicated to physical fitness. Following his retirement from Duke in 2000, Peter and his wife Sally permanently relocated to Glendale Springs, where he immediately became involved in the Ashe County community. Peter entered a new facet of his education career by volunteering with Mountain View Elementary School.  There he shared his love of birdwatching and the outdoors with the students of the Eagle Bird Club which he and teacher Ruth Turnmire formed.  Working with these students gave him great joy. He was a regular in the county's bridge club circles, served as President of the Blue Ridge Bird Club and the Ashe County Garden Club and volunteered with the National Committee for the New River.  He was a member of the R.O.M.E.O. men's breakfast group. Peter was well known for his culinary talents, especially his oatmeal raisin cookies. He traveled extensively in the United States and to Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, but always loved to come home to the mountains of Ashe County where he felt he belonged.

He is survived by his loving wife and best friend of 23 years, Sally Kiker Zwadyk, his children and their spouses Laura (David) Davenport of Midlothian, Va., Vincent Peter (Julie) Zwadyk of Huntersville, N.C., Becky (Mike Cantwell) Zwadyk of Arlington, Va., Dave (Barbara) Zwadyk of Greensboro, N.C., and William P. Tatum III of Glendale Springs, N.C.  He is also survived by his grandchildren, Ashley and Marshall Davenport, Maeve and Eoin Cantwell, Walsh Zwadyk, and Christopher Harvey.

Though his professional accomplishments were many, his five children remember him for being a Dad who treated them as individuals, supporting their different endeavors.  He coached their sports teams, was a scout leader, and attended all activities in which they were involved.

Peter Gilligan
UNC Hospitals and School of Medicine