Peggy Ruth Gilliam Perkins

Peggy Ruth Gilliam Perkins passed away peacefully, just as she lived her life, from Alzheimer’s on June 7.

She was born March 26, 1951, in Amarillo, Texas, to S.D. and Velma (Kyle) Gilliam. She graduated from Tascosa High School in 1969 and, in the ensuing five years, became the youngest head cashier at a Sears store in the United States.

In 1974, she moved to northern New Mexico with her best friend, Marliss, and her oldest brother, John. There, she met Jerry Perkins, who was working at Jemez House, a group foster home in Espanola, New Mexico. After Peggy also began working at Jemez House, she and Jerry married on April 25, 1975, on the banks of the Rio Grande River. They celebrated 50 years of marriage last year.

After a three-month honeymoon that found the couple backpacking from Texas to Panama and back, Peggy and Jerry moved to Iowa in March 1976, when Jerry started his 35-year journalism career. After several jobs in retail, Peggy became the store manager of A Okay Antiques in Valley Junction, a job she dearly loved for almost 35 years. From June 1978 to February 1982, the couple had three sons, who were fortunate to have Peggy as their mother with her patient and calm manner.

Those characteristics were most evident when Peggy and the three boys joined Jerry in Stavropol, Russia, for five months in 1992, when Jerry managed the Russian-American Agribusiness Center. When asked what it was like to live like a Russian housewife, Peggy answered with her characteristic good humor: “The washing machine sucks and the vacuum cleaner doesn’t.”

For many years, she refreshed her love of the southwest every fall when she traveled to Ft. Worth, Texas, to visit her mother and her brother Jim’s family. Then, it was on to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she attended the annual wine and chili festival with her sister, Ann, and friends.

Those who knew Peggy often commented on her kindness and tranquil demeanor, but beneath her modest exterior was a strong, independent woman who knew her own mind. She was loved by everyone who knew her.

Peggy is survived by her husband, Jerry, and their three sons: John of Jefferson City, Missouri; Geoff of Scranton, Iowa; and Jeremy and his wife Beth (Allen) and their two children, Celia and Robbie, who live in Beaverdale. She also is survived by her brother, Jim Gilliam, and his wife, Darby, and their family of Ft. Worth, Texas; and her sister, Ann Richmond, and her husband, Wayne, of La Luz, New Mexico. She was preceded in death by her parents and her brothers, John and Dale.

 A celebration of Peggy’s life will be held from noon to 3 pm on Sunday, July 12, at the HiFi Brew Lounge, 103 S. 11th St. in West Des Moines, one block south of Railroad Ave. Those attending are encouraged to come and go as they please during the celebration of this remarkable woman.

Memorial contributions can be made in Peggy’s name to the Alzheimer’s Association of Iowa (www.alz/iowa), Planned Parenthood North Central States (www.wearepp.org/inmemory), or Self-Help International (www.selfhelpinternational.org).