Michael Byron Peterson

Michael Byron Peterson, age 61, passed away unexpectedly on October 19, 2025, at his mother’s home in Madison. He was raised by his parents, Byron and Dorothy Peterson, along with his sister Kathie, in the Madison suburb of Orchard Ridge.

For about the past eight years, Michael has been struggling with COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and currently was waiting for a double-lung transplant at the University of Wisconsin Hospital Transplant Center.

As a young boy, Michael was a happy, loving son, brother, and grandchild full of curiosity of the world around him, always ready to venture into it at any time. He had a cat he loved very much named Tigger. Michael had dyslexia, a learning disability, and school was difficult for him, but viewing educational programs on television was very helpful. As an adult, he was a very good Trivia player.

Michael loved to be outdoors and was a Boy Scout from Cub Scout to earning an Eagle Scout Award in 1980, the highest progress award in Scouting. He attended James Madison Memorial High School, where he was on the Gymnastics Team, and graduated in 1982. He was always trying to learn new things, and in 1983 he graduated from a one-year Automotive Servicing Course at Madison Area Technical College. In 1985 he completed the Dale Carnegie Course.

As an adult, Michael worked for many companies and businesses. Among them were two printing press companies, including five years at Webcrafters in Madison. He lived for three years in Rhinelander, Wisconsin where he learned to cook and serve at times as a chef at a large restaurant and pub. Michael moved with a friend to Knoxville, Tennessee where he worked as a supervisor for a company that filed K-cups with coffee for the Keurig Coffee Machines.

During those years Michael liked to do some adventurous things like skydiving and driving a racing car on a Speedway Track. He enjoyed speed and things that went fast. In the winter he liked to do downhill skiing and, in the summer, quieter sports like fishing and golfing. He liked talking to people and listening to music and dancing. He met many girls but never found the “right one” to marry. He was a loyal fan of both the Wisconsin Badgers and the Green Bay Packers. He loved dogs and learned how to train them.

By late 2013 Michael decided he wanted to return home to Madison and go back to school. He spent two years at the ITT Technical Institute in their School of Information Technology and graduated with honors receiving an Associate Degree of Applied Science in Network Systems Administration on June 22, 2016. He was proud of his achievement and became very capable in the electronics world. He worked for a tech company for a couple of years until he required oxygen for his COPD and was unable to work.

Michael is survived by his mother, Dorothy Peterson, two nieces, Karen Geiger Laitsch (Sam) and son Jackson, Amy Geiger, and several first cousins. He was preceded in death by his father, Byron Peterson, and his sister, Kathie Peterson Geiger.

A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on November 15, 2025, at the Orchard Ridge United Church of Christ, 1501 Gilbert Road, Madison, Wisconsin, with time for visitation at 10:00 a.m. prior to the service and at the luncheon after the service.

The family wishes to thank Michael’s physician, Dr. Kenneth Loving, and the Transplant Center Staff at the University of Wisconsin Hospital for all their wonderful care and concern for Michael.

Please share your memories of Michael by posting in his guestbook. 

Cress Funeral & Cremation Service

3610 Speedway Road Madison

(608) 238-3434