Dave Petersen, Philly musician who launched a quasi-guerrilla campaign to find a kidney donor, dies at 29

Dave Petersen, 29, a local musician who captured the attention of Philadelphians with his quasi-guerrilla marketing campaign to find a kidney donor, died in his sleep on Tuesday, Nov. 26.

At age 18, Mr. Petersen was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease (PKD), a condition that forced the removal of his kidneys earlier this year. On dialysis three days a week since July 2023, Mr. Petersen distributed stickers that read “NEEDS A KIDNEY” all over the city, from train stations to street poles and even trendy bars. A living match could be anywhere, he told The Inquirer in September, though he didn’t find one in time.

» READ MORE: Dave needs a kidney. He’s putting up stickers all over South Philly to find one.

Mr. Petersen was born Nov. 28, 1994, in Voorhees. He graduated from Hammonton High School and later obtained a bachelor’s degree at Drexel University. Mr. Petersen would often stand out in a crowd because of his 6-foot-7 stature, long hair and beard, and T-shirt and shorts ensemble. He loved to listen to and make “noise” music, a genre that is best known for its experimental qualities and “heavier” sounds.

His aunt Shari Vassello, who like several members of the family also has polycystic kidney disease, joked that her nephew could be a “little scary looking” but was friendly and approachable. Mr. Petersen, Vassello said, was a “gentle giant” despite every other word coming out of his mouth being a curse.

“He was just very kind, and he didn’t hide things. He told you how he felt about something right up front,” Vassello said.

That gentle demeanor was clear in ways big and small. When Vassello’s father died years ago, Mr. Petersen made it a point to be there, taking a 14-hour bus from Philadelphia to North Carolina for the funeral.

And when Matt Switocz, a close friend, found himself at a low point and searched for a way to express himself through music, Mr. Petersen not only encouraged him to use “harsh noise” music as an outlet, but also helped his friend get on his feet in the field and put out new tracks.

Even as Switocz moved away from the genre, Mr. Petersen remained equally supportive of his musical endeavors.

“Every time I wrote a sick riff, every time I finished an instrumental in Guitar Pro, every time I so much as breathed anything relating to that, Dave would be the first to know,” Switocz said.

Shanna Petersen, Mr. Petersen’s younger sister, said her brother possessed patience and generosity even as a child. When she tried to copy his every move, taking an interest in Pokémon on the Game Boy, Magic: The Gathering, or the card game Yu-Gi-Oh!, Mr. Petersen would never peg her as his annoying sister. Instead, he taught her how to play those games, going so far as to help her build her own card decks and win battles.

These were hobbies the siblings enjoyed through adulthood.

“We would regularly get together and play Magic: The Gathering,” Shanna Petersen said. “More recently, we started getting back into Pokémon because he’s always been into it.”

In addition to gaming, Mr. Petersen was a big wrestling fan and enjoyed graphic design, according to family. But his biggest point of pride was his music. His noise project “Hallucinogenic Bulb,” which he played under in Philadelphia, was his pride and joy.

In addition to his sister and his aunt, Mr. Petersen is survived by several cousins.

A service for Mr. Petersen is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 8, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Pennsylvania Burial Co., 1327-29 S. Broad St., Philadelphia.

Mr. Petersen’s family asks that donations in his memory be made to the PKD Foundation (https://pkdcure.org/).