Peter Dana

Peter Newton Dana, 78, of Hamilton, MA, passed away March 1st at the Kaplan House, Danvers, MA, from complications of esophageal cancer. He was surrounded by his loving family. He is survived by his devoted wife of 38 years, Mary Louise (Perry), his five children: Catherine Dana Cormier (Philip) of Lexington, Elizabeth Dana Parker (Joseph), John Tillinghast Dana (Cathryn), both of Marblehead, Emily Dana Bottomley (Taylor), of Charlestown, and Andrew Henry Halsey Dana of Boston, and a brother, Charles H. Dana (Ann) of Perrysburg, OH. He was also blessed with seven loving grandchildren: Elise and Henry Cormier, Will and Sam Parker, Allison and Tyler Dana, and Townsend Bottomley, as well as many nieces and nephews. Peter grew up in Providence, RI, the son of Newton T. and Edith E. Dana of Darien, Connecticut. He attended Providence Country Day School, Brown University, New York University and its Graduate School of Business Administration. His business career in municipal finance spanned 50 years. Peter was a partner at White Weld & Co., and after the merger with Merrill Lynch, went on to manage the regional bond departments for Paine Webber, Carolan & Company and Oppenheimer. He was also President of Shawmut Brokerage Services and managed the banks trading and underwriting of municipal securities. At the time of his death, Peter was a Vice President of Institutional Securities with Eastern Bank Capital Markets. He served on the boards of the Boston chapter of the Brown University Club, ECCF, the Hamilton/Wenham Open Land Trust, and the Manchester Sailing Association. A current member of the Hamilton Conservation Commission for 27 years, Peter was President of Prides Beach Association for 15 years. He had previously been the General Chairman for the Hamilton United Way Annual Appeal, and served as the New England Lobbyist for the Investment Bankers Association. Peter loved traveling and spending time with family in the mountains and on the water. His true passion was offshore racing. As a younger man, he co-skippered the yacht Bolero, and participated in numerous Newport to Bermuda Ocean races, Southern Racing Circuit, Annapolis-Newport, as well as other contests. Peter was a former member of the Manchester Yacht Club, and a member of Myopia Hunt Club for over 46 years where he was an active participant in its racquet sports up until the time of his diagnosis last summer. His happy personality and wit will be greatly missed. Visiting hours will be held Tuesday, March 10th from 4-8 pm, at Campbell Funeral Home, 525 Cabot Street, Beverly, MA. Funeral services will be private. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Peters memory can be made to Essex County Greenbelt, 82 Eastern Avenue, Essex, MA, or Kaplan Family Hospice House, 78 Liberty Street, Danvers, MA 01923. Information, directions, condolences at www.campbellfuneral.com.