Margaret Hargreaves

Peggy was born on January 16, 1936, in Brooklyn, NY to Margaret Veronica Schmitz (Byrne) and Frank Ambrose Schmitz. She was the mother of five and the devoted wife of Robert Hargreaves for over 67 years.

The third of six children, Peggy lived her early years on Spruce Street in West Hempstead, NY, attending school at George Washington Elementary, The Chestnut Street School and then taking the train to the all-girls Bishop McDonnell Memorial High School in Brooklyn, NY. Following graduation she worked for The Insurance Company of North America and Meadowbrook Bank in Nassau County. She met her husband, Bob, at a dance at the Irish American Hall in Mineola in 1954. They married in October 1956. Bob was drafted into the U.S. Army and sent to Fort Huachuca, AZ soon after their Niagara Falls honeymoon. Peggy accompanied him to Fort Huachuca where she worked for an Army Colonel in the intelligence division. In the two years that followed they created lasting Arizona friendships and memories. Stories about those years are still retold today with great fondness.

Peggy and Bob returned to New York in 1958 and started a family. Their children Kevin, Michael, Margaret, Jennifer, and Amy were born in quick succession between 1960 and 1970. When their growing family outgrew the house on Van Nostrand Avenue in North Merrick they built a new home on Woodland Road in Miller Place’s Rustic Acres on Long Island, moving there in March 1970, just 2 months after Peggy gave birth to their fifth child, Amy. They spent 23 years there, forging lifelong, cherished neighborhood friendships and community connections that continue today.

During these Miller Place years Peggy enjoyed playing doubles tennis with her friends and never missed the chance to cheer on her daughters exploits on the badminton court or field hockey field. Her interest in sports extended to her foray into refereeing - she became a ref for girl's high school volleyball games.

In the 70s and early 80s Peggy performed with the Carriage House Players in Stony Brook, NY. She found joy in her performances and the friendships she made there. Her portrayal of Fraulein Schneider in Cabaret, was a standout among her roles. She shared her passion for musical theater with her children, and her daughters performed with her in several Carriage House productions. Her son Mick became a musician in his own right and she would journey into NYC on occasion to see him play live.

After the kids grew up and left home, Peggy and Bob downsized to nearby Mt. Sinai - close enough to maintain their local friendships. Four beloved grandchildren followed. In her later years Peggy mastered texting and was known to send off encouraging paragraphs to her grandkids.

She is survived by her husband, Robert, her children; Michael “Mick” Hargreaves of Manorville, NY, Margaret “Meg” Hargreaves of Alexandria, VA (Michael J. Keegan), Jennifer Pawliczak of Ossining, NY (Lenny), Amy Hargreaves of New York City, four grandchildren; Luc Selmès, Nina Selmès, Lily Pawliczak, Sam Pawliczak and her five siblings; Dorothyann Reilly of North Carolina, Robert Schmitz of Levittown, NY (Marcia Berrios), Marie Buckley of Naples, FL, Rita Byrne of Stony Brook, NY and Richard Schmitz of Toronto, Ontario (Ruth Wagner). She was preceded in death by her mother, Margaret Veronica Schmitz (Byrne), her father, Frank Ambrose Schmitz and her son, Kevin Hargreaves.

A funeral mass celebrating her life will take place at 10 am on Thursday, August 31st at St. Louis de Montfort Catholic Church in Sound Beach, NY, followed by interment at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Coram, NY