Boots N. Pepper

Our beloved Mom, wife, Boots N. Pepper, passed quickly on Wednesday, February 21, 2018. We are saddened that we lost her nine days after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Her family traveled to Southport to be beside her as she passed from this world into heaven. Boots grew up in Orlando, Florida, where she was involved in the world of fashion. She taught etiquette to young girls. She did brochure advertisements for Tupperware. In the 60s, she was one of the first Polaroid Land Camera demonstrators. You could also see Boots on television, in print ads and often find her commentating a fashion show.

She was involved in her home church, Faith Assembly, where she served as the makeup artist for holiday productions. She accepted Jesus as her savior in 1978. She loved the Lord and showed it in all her actions.

Widowed at age 22, she raised her daughter, Barbara Ferris Gibbs, for several years alone until she met and married her husband of 62 years, Bill Nevius. When Marcia was born, they became a family of four.

She enjoyed gardening and grew flowers, herbs and vegetables. She picked her herbs and vegetables and made delicious meals without using any recipes. A pinch of this and a little bit of that with a lot of love included. She often hosted dinner parties to share her culinary creations.

The beach was one of her favorite places. Every trip meant picking up shells for her collection. She saw every shell as if it were new.

Animals gave her much pleasure. One year she nursed orphan squirrels. She befriended a stray cat that later became her beloved pet, Missy. She also had many dogs throughout her life.

The local thrift shops will miss Boots popping in to find her latest bargain. She again used her creative talents to coordinate her new outfits. She often found new scarves to add to her collection of over 300 so she would be ready to accessorize any outfit.

Several years after the passing of her husband, Bill Nevius, she reconnected and married Bud Pepper who was her next-door neighbor at the age of 14. They knew many of the same friends and shared their memories of mutual friends growing up. Boots knew Bud’s wife Wendy and Bud knew her first husband, Allen Ferris. They had many friends and memories from their past. Boots and Bud married in 2009. After sharing their life together in busy Orlando, they decided to move to Southport for a slower lifestyle and to be near Marcia Parker, Boot’s daughter and best friend. A few years later Bud’s daughter Lori and husband Doug joined them in Southport.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Beach Road Baptist Church, 4457 Flagship Avenue, Southport, N.C. 28461 or SOAR (Southport Oak Island Animal Rescue), 3376 St. Charles Place, Southport, North Carolina 28461.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at 1:00 pm Friday, March 2, 2018 at Beach Road Baptist Church 4457 Flagship Ave SE, Southport, N.C. 28461. Boots made sure all the details of the service reflected her personal touch. She would have loved to see everyone in bright colors as well.

Peacock-Newnam & White Funeral and Cremation Service, Southport