Ireesa Peterson Thompson

Ireesa Peterson Thompson was born on June 5, 1936 in Ridge Spring, SC. She was the fifth child and only surviving daughter of Ida (Meacham) and Eddie Frank Peterson. She transitioned to her heavenly home on Monday, July 28, 2025 at Nathan Adelson Hospice in Las Vegas, NV.

At an early age, Ireesa joined Ridge Hill Baptist Church, which her grandfather was one of the founders. As a young girl, she was active in the church and community until the family home was destroyed by fire in 1952. After the fire, the family moved to Columbia, SC.

Ireesa graduated from CA Johnson High School in 1953. She then attended Benedict College where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education. While at Benedict College, she was initiated into Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc in 1954. She was inducted into Alpha Kappa Mu Academic Fraternity in 1955. Recognizing the need for additional education, she attended summer school at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, where she earned her Master of Education in Business Education degree in 1962. She was inducted into Gamma Phi Epsilon, the Business Education Academic Fraternity, at Temple University in 1962.

In 1964, Ireesa met the love of her life, Raymond Thompson, who was a Captain in the US Army at the time. While they were dating, Raymond and Ireesa were known for taking their nieces and nephews on outings with them, something that the nieces and nephews talk about to this day. On December 18, 1965, Ireesa and Raymond were married in Columbia, SC.

Ireesa became a career Army officer’s wife. Aside from Vietnam, she and their young family traveled with Raymond to his assigned duty stations, which included being stationed in Germany for 3 years. In 1977, when Raymond transitioned from active duty to the reserves, the family moved to Lakeside, OH. Ireesa then joined Lakeside United Methodist Church in Lakeside, OH, where she was an active member as well as an active member of the choir.

Over the course of her career, Ireesa taught high school business subjects in South Carolina, Maryland, North Carolina and Ohio for 27 years. Of those years, 17 years were spent teaching at Port Clinton High School in Ohio, where in addition to teaching, she served as Advisor to the Yearbook staff for several years. She often said that a great measure of her successful teaching was when students came back to her much later to thank her for the training that they had received from her and that her contributions were valuable to their career success. Ireesa retired from teaching in 1996.

In the fall after her retirement, she and Raymond moved to Las Vegas, NV. She joined and became an active member of Desert Spring United Methodist Church, as well as a member of the choir. After years of being inactive, she joined the Las Vegas Alumnae Chapter (LVAC) of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Additionally, she filled her time traveling with Raymond and with her family. Her immediate and extended family were very important to her.

From her union with Raymond, she had two children, Melva Valerie Thompson-Robinson and Raymond Douglas Thompson. She was known for attending her children’s sporting events. She also was known for attending her grandchildren’s sporting and school events in Las Vegas, NV.

Left to cherish her memories are her two children; three grandchildren, Christopher Thompson, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Lauryn Thompson-Robinson; in-laws, Mary Lois Cobb, Corrie Christine Thompson, Learlean T. Hill (Larry Thomas), and William R. Thompson (Renay); and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. Ireesa is preceded in death by her husband, parents, brothers, sisters-in-law and a brother-in-law.