It is with a heavy heart that the family of Peggy Taylor-Lewis let her extended family and many friends know that our beloved Mother and Grandmother passed away on June 20, 2023. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday; July 8, 2023, 11 a.m., New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, 18 S. 14th Street Van Buren, Ark. Visitation: Friday, July 7, 2023, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the church. Burial: Monday, July 10, 2023 10 a.m. Fort Smith National Cemetery.
Peggy Lewis was a blessing from God; born on July 5, 1936 to the late James Taylor and Lucille Deffebaugh-Taylor in Cane Hill, Arkansas.
She was called to take her eternal rest on Tuesday; June 20, 2023 in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Peggy was preceded in death by her husband; Herbert Lewis and daughter; Inge Lewis.
Peggy made life-long impressions on each and every spirit she encountered throughout her life, and her heart of gold shone through her vessel. She was admired and adored by many.
She was a patient and kind person, who sincerely loved her family. Although her time on this earth has come to an end; her legacy continues on through all of those she touched. She will be missed by all who loved and treasured her so dearly in life.
Peggy will forever be cherished and remembered by her Son: Danny (Michelle) Lewis of Van Buren, Arkansas; her daughter: Denise (Pete) Peter of New Iberia, Louisiana. Her Grandsons: Christopher Peter, Malcolm Peter, Darriawn Lewis and his mom (Karla); and a Step-grandson: Jermale (Raven) Jones. Her Great-granddaughter: Jara Jones; and The Parhem Family: Gordon, Jeanne, Quinn and Sean. Along with a host of other relatives and friends.
Final care and arrangements entrusted to: Rowell-Parish Mortuary, 611 N. Ninth Street, Fort Smith.
The family has requested memorials be made to:
New Hope Missionary Baptist Church
18 S. 14th Street
Van Buren, Ark. 72956
Fayetteville Public Education Foundation
Taylor-Lackey Endowment Fund
PO Box 571
Fayetteville, Ark. 72701
Peggy Lewis was a blessing from God; born on July 5, 1936, to the late James Taylor and Lucille Deffebaugh-Taylor in Cane Hill, Arkansas.
Fayetteville School District Remembrance
Peggy Taylor-Lewis
Class of 1956
Only two days after the 1954 landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Fayetteville School Board voted to integrate the Fayetteville High School.
Peggy Taylor was one of seven African American students, two juniors and five sophomores, who attended FHS in the fall of 1954. In 1956, Peggy and classmate Preston Lackey were the first African American students to graduate from Fayetteville High School.
During this historic time in Arkansas and the United States, Peggy was an unsung pioneer among her classmates. Peggy attended Philander Smith College in Little Rock and earned a degree in early education from Westark College in Fort Smith.
In 1966, she began a career at Head Start in Van Buren and retired as director. Two Fayetteville graduates have narrated Peggy’s story of integration: Charles Y. Alison (FHS Class of 1976) in A Brief History of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and Julianne Lewis (FHS Class of 1984) in Civil Obedience: An Oral History of School Desegregation in Fayetteville, Arkansas, 1954–1965.
Peggy and her late husband, Herbert C. Lewis, have two boys and a girl: Denise Ann Peter, Inge Lewis, and Danny Lewis and three grandsons.