Peggy Sutton Gilmore

Peggy was born on March 8, 1932, in Vidalia, Georgia to Olin T. Sutton and Juanita Cooper Sutton. At an early age she moved with her family to Dublin, Georgia, where she graduated with honors in 1950 from Dublin High School. She attended Bessie Tift College in Forsyth, Georgia, her freshman year and went on to earn an AB degree in 1953 from Georgia State College for Women (now Georgia State College and University) in Milledgeville. Over the next three years she served as librarian at Dalton Georgia High School and earned a Master of Librarianship from Emory University in 1956.

Peggy’s student years were busy and rewarding. During high school she was a cheerleader, member of the tennis team, editor of the yearbook, and a participant in the debate team, which won the state championship her senior year. AT Georgia State College for Women, she was on the student government board and wrote for the Golden Slipper annual celebrations. While at Emory, the University in conjunction with the Atlanta Public Library established an internship on her behalf. This honor allowed her to work at Atlanta Public Library’s main library and branches. She was also recipient of a scholarship from the Buckhead Library Association.

In 1956, Peggy began married life as an Air Force wife living in four states and on Okinawa. In 1968, she with her husband and three children settled in Statesboro, Georgia, where she began work as a librarian in the Acquisitions Department at Georgia Southern College (Georgia Southern University). During her tenure there, she served on several campus committees and was a member of the state and southeastern library associations. She retired in 1992 as an Associate Professor.

Although Peggy’s professional career spanned four decades, family was always the center of her life. She took pleasure in reading fiction and poetry, in traveling and attending plays and concerts. In later life her greatest joy came from time spent with her two grandsons. She attended the First Baptist Church of Statesboro.

Peggy was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Lt. Col. John Torrance Gilmore, Jr; daughter, Cooper Gilmore; and daughter-in-law, Joni Land Gilmore.

Peggy is survived by her son, John (Jay) T. Gilmore, III of Wichita Falls, TX; daughter, Clair Gilmore Wright; grandsons, Joseph D. and Olin T. Wright all of Statesboro; sisters, Pat Sutton Cochran and her husband, Ben and Teresa Sutton Wilkes all of Dublin; sister-in-law, Betty Gilmore Alford and her husband, Talmadge of Pace, FL and a number of nieces, nephews and cousins.

A memorial service will be held 3:00 PM Sunday, November 12, 2017 in the chapel of Hodges-Moore Funeral Home with Dr. H. William Perry officiating.

The family will greet friends after the memorial service.

A private burial will take place in Eastside Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to Bessie Tift College-Mercer University, University Advancement, 1501 Mercer University Drive, Macon, GA 31207 or Emory University, 1762 Clifton Road, Suite 1400, Atlanta, GA 30372.

Please visit our online memorial at www.hodgesmmore.com to sign the guest book and share fond memories with the Gilmore.

Hodges-Moore Funeral Home is in charge of funeral arrangements.