Dick Peterec was a great and luminous professor, academic advisor and friend over four years at Bucknell. He gave much of himself, staking out a positive liberal, current-to-the-moment, no-holds barred viewpoint. I remember his many joyously aggressive political geography lectures before enthralled crowds of students. He was an activist in the Lewisburg community, using his law license to sponsor students as paralegals for the Lewisburg Prison Project. Dick was also a friend, quick to bring students to his small farm, chock-full with pets (and beguiling daughters), for dinner or an overnight in fresh air, apart from what sometimes felt like the binding complexities of campus.

Most of all, though, my sense is that Dick was a kindred spirit earnestly seeking Truth through active learning with his students. One golden moment with Dick was following a January semester trek through Prague. We were outside of Delphi, Greece, in a small outdoor cafe, in the sunshine, sipping golden beer. (Pictured above.) He said: "This is it. This is what life's about." Dick had once again defied conventions, organized about 45 students, flown us through Canada to behind the iron curtain, into Athens (and thence on to Cairo, Amman and Jerusalem), arranged receptions at embassies and great museums, and the like -- all for a pittance of $985, inclusive. He had taken students from a parochial, small town college and set them immediately in the vibrant wash of world politics, in order that we could learn and appreciate.

© 2002, James R. Wilson.