Peggy W. Grant

Services for Peggy Wiggins Grant of Thomasville are at 2:00PM on Friday, July 18, 2003 at the First United Methodist Church. Peggy Tyson will play piano selections related to her mother's life beginning at 1:30PM. Rev. Burns Willis will officiate and interment will be in Laurel Hill Cemetery. Born May 11, 1918 in Cleveland, MS.,to Sylvia Brannon and Robert Wiggins. Two brothers and two sisters followed, and they survive her. The family enjoyed singing together and playing the piano and the pedal-pump organ at home. They attended Church regularly, and every Sunday at the noon meal, each child was required to recite a Bible verse by memory before anyone could eat. When Mr. Wiggins had to be hospitalized because of alcohol addiction, and subsequently lost his family because of it, Peggy became even more of a little mother to her siblings, while her own mother made a living for them all. Sylvia's goal was to see that all five of her children earned college degrees, and with an unwavering belief in God and a strong determination, she succeeded. Peggy was devoted to her mother and loved her father, in spite of his affliction. She told of the good things he had done for his family, and especially how he had sat in a chair by her bedside all night when she was very young and very ill. She loved and stayed very close to all of her brothers and sisters all of her life, and enjoyed telling stories of their childhood together. Later, she enjoyed their growing families, as well. To this day, James, Robert, Betty and Anne refer to her simply as Sister. Peggy was an honor student in her studies, all the way through college and her degree in English from Delta State University, in Cleveland. In high school, she never had to take the final exams because of her top grades, and later said she often wondered, at the time, what they were like, and felt lucky, because they might have been her undoing. But you will not find her in her class graduation photograph, because when it was taken, she was still in the restroom, trying to get her hair just right! Peggy was also a great piano student, and played a solo recital of classical music at the age of 14. In college, she played the role of the mother, in the play Little Women, and although she enjoyed the theater, the piano was her lifelong friend. She played it all of her life, and taught her children and a few neighborhood children, from time to time. After college, she worked as a secretary for Mississippi Power and Light in Cleveland, and was about to embark on a career in Washington, D.C., when she was swept off her feet by a new employee, Ralph Grant, a tall man from Texas. They married on October 5, 1940 and had two daughters, Peggy and Beth. Beth has a son, Brian. They all survive her. Through the first sixteen years of marriage, there were many moves, because of Army, and then, company transfers for Ralph. They finally settled in Shreveport, Louisiana, staying for forty years. After a fulltime job as wife and mom, with an occasional part-time secretarial job, Peggy re-entered the work force fulltime, and had a twenty-two year career with the Federal Housing Administration in Shreveport. During these years, and in retirement, with the girls grown, Peggy and Ralph traveled throughout the United State, Canada, and Europe. In 1996, the couple moved to Thomasville to join their girls and grandson. Throughout her life, Peggy was an active member of the United Methodist Church, a circle leader, and Sunday school pianist. Physically beautiful, she also loved beauty, and visited museums, and attended concerts, the ballet, and the opera, all of her life. She was a good cook, a good gardener, a good friend, a loving daughter and sister, a faithful and frugal wife, and a devoted and enlightening mother and grandmother. She enjoyed writing, and corresponded with absent family and friends from the age of nine. She picked flowers from her garden and successfully mailed them in boxes to brighten their lives. She was generous and gentle and caring, and talented, in music, and in life. Peggy Wiggins Grant suffered from Alzheimer's disease the last thirteen years of her life and died from it on July 14, 2003. Even in illness, she never uttered an unprintable word. She was cared for by her family in her home through every stage of the disease, and made as comfortable as possible. Thomasville Hospice visited her every week during her last months and helped the family in this process. Survivors in Thomasville are Ralph Grant, R. O. Grant, Peggy and Jim Tyson, Beth Grant and Brian Haythorn; in Cleveland, James Wiggins and Christine Jones; in Texas, Robert and Sue Wiggins; in Maryland, Betty and Clatie Powell; in Ohio, Anne Dismuke. Other are nieces and nephews and their children. Visitors may sign the online guest register at www.allenfh.com .
ALLEN & ALLEN FUNERAL HOME