Peter Austin Pane, 29, was born to Richard and Elizabeth Pane in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His father, Richard, worked in construction. His mother, Elizabeth, had been a mathematics prodigy but dropped out of the University of Pennsylvania when she learned she was expecting Peter, which Peter always believed made her resent him.
Almost from the moment Wendy was born nearly two years later, the siblings competed on everything. Academically, Peter invested a lot of time and energy in his schoolwork, but Wendy still outshined him more often than not, seemingly with little effort. They continually played pranks on each other, with the recipient escalating in retaliation every time until a parent finally intervened.
However, when their parents' marriage fell apart, the family dynamics shifted drastically. After his father moved out, Peter felt outnumbered at home and spent little time with Richard, who was bitter and rapidly slipping into alcoholism. He often complained to Peter, blaming Elizabeth for all his problems because she had broken up their home and denied them their father-son relationship.
Years of listening to his father's grievances drove a wedge between Peter and his mother, and by his eighteenth birthday, he felt alienated and alone. He decided to attend the University of Texas to get away from his mother and sister.
After graduation, he married his college sweetheart, Julianne Bower, and they moved to Dallas, Texas. From the beginning, the marriage was rocky. Peter, following his father's example, was regularly overindulging in alcohol. Even after Julianne discovered she was pregnant four years into their marriage, Peter couldn't clean up his act. A few months later, Julianne kicked him out, and they divorced soon after.
Peter's daughter, Jacinta, was born that November. Though Peter has always stayed current with his child support payments, he doesn't see his daughter very often. She and her mother still reside in Dallas.
On his 27th birthday, less than a year after his divorce, Peter received word that his father had died in Pittsburgh of cirrhosis of the liver. He was devastated by the loss and very upset that his mother and sister did not attend the funeral.
Peter's grief only intensified his problems with alcohol. He began having difficulty at work and was eventually fired, but the loss of his job was a wake-up call. He went to rehab and got sober. When he secured a new job with a top-tier company a few weeks after completing rehab, Peter knew his hard work had paid off.
Not long after starting his new job, Peter began a relationship with Amanda Hansen, a woman he met in Dallas. Two years ago, he decided to start his own business, and he and Amanda moved to her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee.
Peter soon found his entrepreneurial feet, connecting software developers with investors. He works from his home office in Memphis and has done well in his business ventures. By last year, he was debt-free and had bought a home, a new car, and some impressive artwork.
Peter found out his sister had moved to Oxford, Mississippi, when she contacted him at his home in Memphis. They were both surprised and delighted to discover that they could put the past behind them and enjoy an adult relationship.
Wendy could see how much Peter had turned his life around, and she really liked his girlfriend, Amanda Hansen. In fact, Wendy was so impressed that she agreed to let her brother handle the negotiations to sell the next software program she developed. They believed it was a new beginning, one they both truly wanted.
Peter was so devastated by his sister's death that he was inconsolable during the funeral preparations and service. The family turned to Wendy's long-time friend, Anil Virani, to deliver the eulogy.