Peter Saunders Dunning died Jan. 4 from complications of to dementia. He was 79.
Dunning earned his bachelor’s degree from Trinity College and his master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania. He eventually taught math at Germantown Friends School before becoming a software developer. His son, William Dunning, remembers his passion for mathematics, referring to his father as a “math geek.”
“He was always teaching me math as a kid and making me feel very special,” William said. “He always loved to talk about math and loved to be with other people who were students of math.”
Another interest William recalled was his father’s taste in classical music. He said his father had a CD rack with hundreds of classical-music albums. Dunning even wrote a piano concerto as a wedding march for when he married his former wife. He also loved to sing and participated in the Singing City and other choirs.
William said his father was involved in LGBT rights for decades. Dunning publicly came out as gay in the early 1970s on a local public-access talk show and became involved in gay-liberation parades soon afterward. His son said he came out “before it was cool.”
“They were pushing the envelope back then,” William said of his father and his friends. “[They said], ‘Hey look at us. We exist. We’re not going away.’ They flaunted it and made themselves be known.”
Additionally, Dunning was involved in the First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto and had interests ranging from camping and bike rides to listening to music and drinking wine. William said most people he talked to after his father’s death recalled how easygoing and happy Dunning was.
“He was always smiling,” William said.
Dunning is predeceased by his parents, Leighton and Laura Dunning; and his brother, Nicholas Dunning. Besides William, he is survived by another son, Robert; his grandchildren, Isabelle and Dale Dunning; and his former wife, Marion Scattergood Ballard.
A gathering in memory of Dunning will be held Feb. 5 in Philadelphia. Interested attendees should call 610-599-1170 for more information.