In loving memory of

Daniel Lester Peters
August 10, 1967 - November 18, 2018

Daniel Lester Peters, 51, of Allison, Iowa, passed away Sunday, November 18, 2018, at his home in Allison.
 
He was born on August 10, 1967, in Waverly, Iowa, to Lester Peters and Marcia Schultz.  Daniel graduated from Plainfield High School and from Joe Kubert School of Art in Dover, New Jersey.  He worked as a computer animator for Asylum out of Los Angeles, California.
 
Daniel had a love for cats and could always get their attention; he was a cat whisperer.  Daniel had an infectious laugh and would laugh often.  He saw humor in the everyday foibles of humanity and saw the humor in himself.  Daniel was a science fiction buff, extraordinaire.  His sense of wonder about all things outer space related led to his interest in writing and animation of "other worlds."
 
Daniel is survived by his mother Marcia (Mervin) Edeker of Allison, his father Lester (Linda) Peters of Plainfield, his brother Roger (Melisa) Peters of Waverly, nephews Alan Peters, U.S. Army, Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, Michael Peters of Allison and Andrew Peters of Allison, step-brother Dr. Brian (Lisa) Edeker of Iowa City, step-brother Daniel (Lori) Edeker of Allison, step-sister Kristin Montgomery (Denise Arend) of Sacramento, California, step-brother Adam Ripley of Nashua, step-sister Melissa (Doug) Berger of Denver, Iowa, step-nieces Madison Wood of Myrtle Beach, North Carolina and McKenzie Wood of Waverly, along with numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.
 
He was preceded in death by his grandparents.
 

In lieu of flowers family requests that memorials be sent to a charity of your choice.

Tributes

Carol (Benning) wrote on Sep 30, 2019:

"He rode the yellow school bus. Sometimes I would babysit him. He could beat me at arm wrestling at age 8. (And no, I did not "let" him win.) He didn't even brag about it or embarrass me about it. One day (where was Roger? I don't recall) I babysit on a summer afternoon and ran out of games to play so we just walked down the gravel road, to the creek, and sat on a culvert edge tossing rocks into the water. I am the most boring babysitter in the world, I kept thinking. Later, he proclaimed that had been the best day of the summer, tossing pebbles into the creek...!!! I was floored. He meant it!! He loved dinosaurs. He was always good at drawing them, and anything else. I cannot believe Danny (Daniel) is no longer among us. His classic All-American look, blue-eyed blonde farm boy, built like a wrestler who could toss hay bales as if they were potatoes... I am so sorry your family has lost him, so young! "

Henry Will wrote on Nov 30, 2018:

"Dan and I worked together at Absolute Entertainment on video games in upper saddle River, New Jersey. Dan lived in Dover NJ in two locations. I still live up the street and pass by both of these locations frequently. So, I have often thought of him. I can remember driving him to work at times. He had a great chuckle and a positive attitude. "

Scott Multer wrote on Nov 29, 2018:

"I am truly devastated. Dan was a gentle soul with an infectious smile. I had the pleasure to learn alongside him at Kubert and then at Sierra out in California thanks to Barry T. Smith. He was at my wedding in Yosemite and I have so many fond memories of him. Lost touch over the years but I know he is at peace watching sci-fi in the heavens. God-speed my brother and dear beloved friend. ?"

Steve Lieber wrote on Nov 29, 2018:

"Dan was a friend and classmate at the Kubert School in the late 80s. I remember that he was gentle and funny and earnest, with a great work ethic and a genuine love for comics and adventure stories. My deepest condolences to his family and friends who lost him way, way too soon."

John-Marc Grob wrote on Nov 29, 2018:

"Just heard of Dan passing, very sad. I remember the days picking him up at in home in Dover and driving together to work. I fun guy. He will be missed, and yes I still hear his laugh in my head."

Doug and MaryAnn Lawrence wrote on Nov 29, 2018:

"I went to the Joe Kubert School with Dan and he was my good friend and sometimes bodyguard. He was very protective of his friends and always looked intimidating in his fingerless leather gloves. But he was anything but, he was the text book definition of a softie and he looooooved films. He loved them too much. When something was sad in the film he would be devastated. If there was joy in the film he would explode in cheers and shake the seat in front of him. One time after we saw a movie together it ended, the lights came up and he was the only one clapping. He looked around at people gathering their belongings to leave and shouted to them, "Clap! People worked hard on that!" that's the big heart I remember. Too soon Dan waaaay too soon. Love Doug and MaryAnn. "

Jeff Brennan wrote on Nov 28, 2018:

"Dan was a great friend. We loved watching movies and goofing around in the park when we were in college. He was my room mate for quite a long time, maybe a year or two. He was the kinda person that everybody was happy to see. Every time we would go to the mall, or a movie everyone would know him by name., and they were always happy to see him. I haven't seen him since I moved back east. I was kinda wondering what happened to him. I am really sorry to hear of his passing. He was a great friend, he will be missed."

Art Van Kampen wrote on Nov 28, 2018:

"This is so sad. Dan was a great guy and one of the nicest people I ever knew. We went to the Kubert School together."

Barry Smith wrote on Nov 28, 2018:

"I was Dan's college roommate at the Kubert school and he was a great guy to hang out with. We'd play Rock N' Roll Racing on the Nintendo into the wee hours. He loved art and science fiction and could converse at length on his favorite subjects. Although we've only had diminishing contact over the years, I was shocked and saddened to hear of his passing. If there is a cheesy New Jersey diner in the afterlife, I hope Dan saves me a seat at the table where we can share a plate of fries and get endless coffee refills while we pick up our conversation on which is the best Star Wars film."

Michael Chen wrote on Nov 28, 2018:

"I am very sorry to hear of Dan?s passing. He was a good guy and a great artist. It was a pleasure to have known him as a student at the Kubert School. He will be missed."

Melanie Wehrmacher wrote on Nov 26, 2018:

"Dan was my cousin, and was therefore enormously important to me in a million ways, but the one I'd like to share now is a Life Lesson he taught me by way of the popular 1980s TV show, Miami Vice. (Not surprisingly, this is the first time I've posted a memorial tribute involving Miami Vice.) When we were kids, Dan and I didn't really play together when our families visited. He was just enough older than me that we weren't really on the same plane. Plus, he was a boy, and his place was all Hot Wheels and Star Wars and stuff, so I mostly played outside when I was over there. But I remember being in his room once when I was around 8 or 9, which would have made Dan around 17 or 18, and he had up a poster of Miami Vice. I was just at that age when I was starting to assert my own opinions, so I saw the poster, and said boldly "I don't like Miami Vice." Now, mind you, I don't think I'd ever seen a minute of Miami Vice in my life, so who knows what I was blathering about. Probably I heard some kid I knew say they didn't like the show, so I internalized that opinion as my own. (You'll note I said I was "asserting " opinions, not assessing if they had any basis in reality. Kids are dumb. ) And I said this to an older boy cousin, who could easily have punched me, or yelled at me, or said something cutting that made me feel little and stupid and ridiculous. But that's not what Dan did. When I said "I don't like Miami Vice", Dan very calmly but firmly said "Well, I do." I've thought about that a lot over the last 30 years. How it's not necessary to like the same things as other people to get along with them. And how it's not necessary to tell people you don't like the things they like if it doesn't ultimately affect you one little bit. And how we'd all probably be a little happier if we were a little bit more open-minded, and little bit more accepting, and a little bit better at minding our own business. Now, did Dan remember that interaction? I don't know; I never brought it up to him. I'd be real surprised if he did. But I think about it every time someone in the news or on social media says they hate some new movie, or fashion trend, or, I don't know, pumpkin spice lattes, or whatever. And I'm not saying I never get sucked into hating things, but when I do, Dan's voice is always in my ear, telling me not to be such a goober. Dan and I got a lot closer as we got older. I think we kind of felt like we were the "black sheep" of the family (meaning the kids who went out to the coasts and into the arts.) We continued to not like the same things. He loved cookies; I loved vegetables. He loved science fiction; I loved historical non-fiction. He loved cats; I loved not constantly sneezing because I was in the same room as a cat. But ultimately, none of that mattered because we loved each other, and that was plenty of common ground. I really do love you, Dan. Thank you for making me a better person. I'll miss you a lot."

Carolyn Peters Wehrmacher wrote on Nov 26, 2018:

"Dan was one of the Best nephews anyone could hope to have. I'm so very thankful he was in our lives. Carolyn Peters Wehrmacher"

Hollie Morey wrote on Nov 22, 2018:

"I am so sorry to hear of Dan's passing. You are all in my thoughts. "

Tammi Peters Kalvelage wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"Dan was a great cousin who always had a smile on his face. I have many fond memories of when we were growing up. I will miss him greatly and sorry I hadn?t seen him for awhile. Love, your cousin Tammi"

Roger Brown wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"Dan was one of my best friends and one of the few people I could relate to. I always enjoyed talking with him especially about our favorite movies and TV shows. He helped me accept that it was ok to be geeky and different. I enjoyed going to movies with him and discussing them on the way back to Allison. He also gave me a new appreciation on how much work goes into making movies. He was always very kind and patient with me. I regret not spending more time with him but will never forget his positive personality and kindness. My deepest sympathies go out to all who were lucky enough to know him."

Brent Burpee wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"Dan I are were roommates during one of what I think was both of out favorite times of our life... working at Foundation Imaging on Roughnecks: The Starship Troopers chronicles. We both made a lot of life-long friends working there, and I experienced the full range of his humanity living under the same roof. One day, his orange kitties were going nuts for some reason or another, and chasing each other around the apartment. We were watching and laughing, and then they ran up the stairs, across his bed in the loft, and one of them jumped off at full speed, while the other wisely screeched to a halt. The first cat went Rocky the Flying Squirrel from fifteen feet up, and the look of joy turned to a look of horror mid-air as Dan watched his kitty drop like a rock. Don't worry, the cat was fine, just a little scared and confused (you know, they always land on their feet) but Dan took joy from the simple and ridiculous... and had genuine affection for those things he cared about. Like those cats, and his friends, and being Dan. Nobody was better at being himself than Dan was. We loved him for it. "

Joseph Lawson wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"Dan will be so very missed as an Uncle to my kids, brother to my wife Kelly and I, friend to so many in Southern California where he made such a positive impact as friend and colleague to all he met. From Foundation Imaging to Rhythm & Hues, UFO Films to The Global Asylum, he was known as a great guy of good humor, much silliness, illustration and animation talent and the ability to brighten the day with his presence and laugh. Whether roller blading the paseos of Santa Clarita or riding along during commutes to the valley studios of SoCal, Dan was always a great conversationalist about films, comics, science fiction, life, inspiration and so much more. He achieved his childhood dream of being a film maker and special effects artist in a place that held much inspiration for him including the chance to hike many times at his beloved Vasquez Rocks. His voice and laughter were always a joy on our weekly, sometimes daily phone conversations. I love you, my brother. Rest well."

Pastor Gary and Robyn Mulder wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"I'm sorry...I realized after I posted that the funeral is next Tuesday, not today. We will still be praying for the family this week leading up to the funeral and in the weeks and months ahead. Dan will be greatly missed!"

Pastor Gary and Robyn Mulder wrote on Nov 20, 2018:

"We were so shocked and saddened to hear about Dan...he was a good friend while we lived in Allison. He had such a good sense of humor and cared for others. We wish so much that we could attend the funeral today, but it's just not possible because of the distance. We will be praying for Dan's mom and the rest of the family as they say goodbye to him this afternoon. May God comfort all of you with wonderful memories of Dan. -- Pastor Gary and Robyn Mulder"