Peggy Jo van den Berg

Born Peggy Jo Pounds on December 11, 1933, Peggy was a third generation Orlandoan and the only child of Ruth and Roger Pounds. She attended Concord Elementary, Memorial Junior High (on Lake Eola), graduated from Orlando High School, Class of ’51 and attended Sullins College in Bristol, VA.

Her parents began teaching teenagers ballroom dancing and manners in their Spring Lake Terrace home in 1934-5. In 1953, after her parents built Pounds Studio on Edgewater Drive, Peggy left college to help with classes. In 2005, having taught thousands of teenagers over 45 years, she retired with the 70th Anniversary of “Pounds”, celebrated by the Historical Society of Central Florida.

Peggy Jo and her second husband Egerton van den Berg conceived her only child David, who Peggy raised as would have Joy Adamson, from the 1966 movie, Born Free.

Peggy was a devoted Orlandoan. She was a member of The Junior League of Orlando for 22 years and was a volunteer Pink Lady (Merit Member) at Orange Memorial Hospital for 11 years. She served on the Board of Trustees of the Leukemia Society, the Orange County Historical Society board and was a former chair of Orlando Remembered.

In 1990, Peggy founded the “Orlando natives” for women. Over the years she chaired five Orlando High School Homecomings for classes 1927-52 and served on the City of Orlando Nominating Board. Peggy was a member of The Rosalind Club and the First United Methodist Church of Orlando.

Peggy is survived by her first cousins once removed Richard, Tim and Tom Coulter, and by her son David van den Berg (Amy) and by her grandchildren Eleanor and Henri.

There will be a graveside service on December 11th at 11AM at Greenwood Cemetery, Orlando, Florida. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the First United Methodist Church of Orlando and Great Oaks Village. The family requests your presence at the reception immediately following the graveside service. The reception will take place at The Rosalind Club at noon.