PEGGY JOANN LEE

Peggy JoAnn Lee (Jenkins) March 23, 1951- May 9, 2016. Peggy passed away in her home with her family at her bedside after a long battle with cancer.

Celebration of Life will be 5-7 PM Friday, May 13, 2016 at Cullen Funeral Home, Raymore, MO. Memorial contributions may be made to Crossroads Hospice 14310 East 42nd Street South, Unit 600, Marketplace Shopping Center, Independence, MO 64055 or American Cancer 1100 Pennsylvania Ave, Kansas City, MO 64105.

Peggy was preceded in death by her parents, Roy Jenkins and Helen Jenkins Reed; her brother, Roy, Jr. She is survived by her husband, Johnny Lee, Holden, MO; stepmother, Estella Jenkins, Kansas City, MO; son, Robert Rimmer and wife Charlotte, Mishawaka, IN; daughters, Shannon McDonough and husband Jason, Belton MO; Jessica Lee, Warrensburg MO; grandchildren, Kelsey, Elizabeth, Joey, Kierra and T.J.; step children, Mark Lee and wife Bobbi, Holden MO and Pam Lee; step-grandchildren, Jacob, Aaron, Adam, Cyrus, Jonathan, Braydon; dozens of cousins! And very special, longtime friend, Erma Reilly.

In our desire to pay tribute to our beautiful, loving mother, each of us started with "be sure to mention how much she loved. . . . ." followed with one thing after another. We finally came to the conclusion that a shorter version would be to just say that this woman loved life and everything and everybody.

It very well could have started with the loving family she was born into, especially the grandparents who loved their children and all the grandchildren that came. Each generation was schooled in the importance of family get-togethers. As the years rolled by and the numbers increased, it became a given that this is what families are and this is what they do – not marching orders by any means, but something we do because it's so much fun being with those you love. Of course, the good food was an added bonus. Probably no one had any idea of the actual number of cousins they had!

Peggy was a dedicated, dependable, hard working person, whatever her job. She was always caring and honest; that would have been the case when she worked at Venture in the '70's and through her 25-plus years with the IRS.

But her most important "loves" were her children, grandchildren and cooking; attending their events, which included getting to practices, costumes for Halloween; just any time together for whatever reason, really.

Most people are quite good at things they love which would explain why she was such a good cook. She loved food, especially the items from her gardens; that continued through the winter with the vegetables she had canned or froze during the summer and fall. Even though she hardly ever had a day without potatoes in some form, she probably rarely had to buy potatoes since she had such plentiful crops. In the last few years when the garden became too much for her to handle, she missed the work and the canning and the joy of it all.
Any time spent with family and friends was her happy time – like floating or canoeing on the North Fork River in south Missouri, and crappie fishing on her pontoon boat at Truman Lake; 'Garage-sale-ing' on weekends; shopping; spending quality time with her granddaughter, Kierra, and sharing their love of Chinese and Mexican food.

She loved watching the TV show "Survivor" – an absolute MUST! Everybody thought Bobby was a prime candidate for the show but her hopes were dashed as he "was over qualified", as she would say.

Peggy loved living "out in the sticks"; it was more than worth the almost one hour drive to and from work. Walking the trails in the 13.5-acre woods was like therapy, just soaking up the peace and quiet. It was an especially good year when the morels were plentiful. And then there was Sanibel; the sun, warm water, beaches and "shelling"– they sometimes had to ship shells back home! – Too much to handle with their luggage. All the leisure and pleasures enhanced with the shared friendship of the same ones who made the trip several years in a row. As we mourn the loss of this wonderful woman, just remember she was greeted in heaven with open arms by friends and family.

Arrangements: Cullen Funeral Home, Raymore, MO (816) 322-5278