Peggy Stokes

STOKES, PARMAN, GREENE, DRYMON, TYLEE

Posted By: Tara (email)
Date: 1/11/2010 at 13:08:42

Peggy Stokes of Iowa City passed away the morning of January 9, 2010 at home with her husband John, children Marcia Parman, Lisa Greene, and Jeff Drymon, six months after her diagnosis with pancreatic cancer.

Peggy was born in 1943 and was raised by Ben and Helen Tylee in rural Springville. Peggy loved growing up on that farm. Peggy interrupted her education in 1959 to marry Wil Drymon and raise their children in Marion. Later, after receiving her GED, she graduated from the University of Iowa at the age of 37 with a B.A. in Social Work. Later she earned a MSW from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Her professional career was marked by her 23 years of service at the UIHC Pediatric Center for Disabilities and Development. There she provided assistance to families in difficult physical and emotional situations. Other notable accomplishments in her life included co-founding Sib Ship, which still exists twenty years later. This novel idea was to help with the emotional needs of children whose families included other siblings with disabilities.

For five years a red-headed woman with a penchant for hugs, occupied a corner on the Pentacrest to give voice to her passion for world peace. She met many friends there, and her involvement was recently honored with a ceremony sponsored by the Iowa City Peace Center.

This past summer Peggy and her husband John completed their goal of taking all of their grandchildren on vacations to Washington DC. This, along with the rest of her travels, generated an interest in scrapbooking. She enjoyed sharing this interest with others as a Creative Memories consultant. Peggy and John took many trips together. Her favorites included an Alaskan cruise, Jamaica and a trip to Europe to see granddaughter Kelsey in Germany. Her least favorites included her husband's interest in sports and the battlefields of the Civil War.

The Black Hills of South Dakota held a special place in Peggy's heart, in fact, the family all gathered there to celebrate her 60th birthday. She returned several times, including the Volkswalken, the one day of the year where visitors can walk up on Crazy Horse Mountain, with her friend Anne. They enjoyed biking there as well as many other trails throughout the Midwest.

The last couple of years included shorter trips to Chicago to watch Broadway plays, enjoy the city, Frank Lloyd Wright architecture and witness a Chicago White Sox's perfect game.

With all of her interests and commitments, the most impressive thing about Peggy was her heart and her passion. It was undeniable and touched many people.

A remembrance of these and other things associated with Peggy's life will be held on January 30, 2010 at 11:00am at Lensing Funeral Home (www.lensingfuneral.com) in Iowa City.

In lieu of flowers, memorials have been established with Hospice of Iowa City, Doctors Without Borders and Heifer International. Memorials may be directed c/o the funeral home, PO Box 167, Iowa City, IA 52244.