Peggy Dawn Peterson, 84

There's a new lovely soprano voice in God's choir. Peggy Dawn Peterson went to meet her Lord and be reunited with her loved ones on Tuesday evening, Sept. 16, 2014. Peggy was born in Roundup, Mont., the day of the great stock market crash - Oct. 29, 1929. She was the best thing that happened that day for her parents Bill and Zora Golob.

Peggy grew up in a loving family that included her two sisters, Marjorie Joy and Sylva Marie. They lived in Mullan, Idaho, (where their dad was a miner and a blackjack dealer) then in McGuire, a small farming community near Post Falls. Peggy especially loved her mother to whom she was very close and often shared her sweet memories of her childhood home life.

Peggy met Joseph Peterson, the true love of her life for 63 years, near the end of her junior year in high school and it was love at first sight. She was 16 at the time and her parents made her promise she would finish her senior year if they gave her permission to marry Joe. They married at the Pilgrim Holiness Church in McGuire Aug. 31, 1946, and Peggy graduated from Post Falls High School in 1947 in a class of 19 students.

Joe and Peggy lived in the same house on Corbin Road for almost all of their married life. Theirs was a happy home for them and their four children, Valorie, Pete, Laurie and Sally. The kids' friends were always welcome and they could expect to enjoy lots of homemade cookies and milk or even dinner when they visited.

Peggy loved music so some kind of tunes were always playing in the house. Most often Peggy sang herself. In fact, she prefaced all sorts of tasks with her original, "Everybody's got to work at this house." Mom and her sisters all had nice voices and sang harmony at every opportunity. We kids grew up singing old family songs and church choruses as we canned and froze our garden produce.

Peggy had a strong faith and enjoyed teaching Sunday school at the Post Falls Presbyterian Church. Later she and Joe were founding members of Mt. View Bible Church in Post Falls where she enjoyed fellowshipping with many friends and neighbors. When she could no longer attend church she went to church via television and CDs. She loved the music of the Gaithers and the hymns of Tennessee Ernie Ford especially.

When her kids were in school, Peggy was a great room mother (the best cookie lady ever), a Blue Bird leader, a 4-H foods leader and a hardworking member of the local parent-teacher association. She and her sister Margie ran the PTA booth at the Kootenai County Fair for several years. She and other neighborhood ladies formed a club the called the Eager Beavers where they enjoyed each other's company and made seasonal favors for the luncheons at local nursing homes.

Peggy loved and enjoyed her husband and family and said, "The reward of being a mother is having grandchildren - they made it all worthwhile." She also enjoyed musical theater, grocery shopping, reading, baking, card playing, dancing and shoes (the higher the better when she was young). She embraced current times and was always interested in knowing what was happening locally and in the world. She liked learning new things and listened to countless talking books provided by the Idaho Commission for the Blind. She treasured calls, visits, and letters from her children and grandchildren and had the joy of holding her young great-grandchildren this summer. Peggy lived with her daughter Laurie and her family in Coeur d'Alene after her husband's death and she received wonderful care and family entertainment there.

Peggy has said throughout her life how blessed she was. She was a women who led a simple life - she cared about people and relationships - never "things." She met few people she didn't like and her friends were dear to her. She had strong opinions and wasn't shy about expressing them, especially to her family.

Peggy was much loved by many and we will miss her so much.

Peggy's beloved husband Joe died in 2010, her brother William Golob (Billy Boy) in 1927, her grandson James Peterson in 2011 and her sister Sylva Severson in 2012. She is survived by her four children and their spouses: Valorie and Greg Godwin, Pete and Cindy Peterson, Laurie and Scott Nichols, and Sally Deason; grandchildren Joe Peterson, Seth (Richelle) Godwin, John (Vanessa) Godwin, Amy Godwin (Eric) Law, Bryan and Gina Nichols, Adam and Sam Deason and great-grandchildren Olivia and Fiona Godwin as well as numerous beloved nieces and nephews, and her sister Marjorie Edlund, brother-in-law Phil Severson, brother-in-law Norman Peterson and wife Doris. Also surviving are special "son" Jim Ferguson (Susan) and special friends Dorothea (Aldrich) Richardson and Hattie Rhee (Hodge) Gottschalk.

Deep gratitude from the family for wonderful care and kindness given to Mother by these special women from Hospice of North Idaho - Liz, Shawna, Lori and Lesa. Thank you so very much, ladies.

A celebration of Peggy's life will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Mt. View Bible Church, 3974 N. Chase Rd., Saturday, Sept. 27. Brunch will be served.

Donations in Peggy's name would be welcome to Hospice of North Idaho, 9493 N. Government Way, Hayden, ID 83835. Please visit Peggy's online memorial and sign her guestbook at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com