Peggy Roberts

Peggy Lucille House Roberts passed away on April 28, 2026 at home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina at age 90, surrounded by family. She was preceded in death by her husband Heyward Bradford Roberts, Jr. (d. 2025), her brother Roy F. House, Jr. (d. 2023) and her son-in-law David Welch (d. 2016). Peggy is survived by daughters Mary Ellen Gabriel (Rick) and Katherine Ruth Roberts (David Welch) and her son Charles Heyward Roberts, along with grandchildren Bennett and Hugh Gabriel and Serena and Daniel Welch.

Born June 26, 1935 to Roy F. House and Ruth Ivy House in Helena, Arkansas, Peggy spent her early years in Mountain Home, Arkansas, a small town known for its population of workers helping to construct major dams in the area. Her father was a civil engineer with the Army Corps of Engineers, working on the Bull Shoals and Norfolk dams.

As a child, Peggy loved to explore the woods, creeks and fields near Mountain Home with her collie, Buff. Later, the family moved to Winchester, Tennessee, where her father was chief of construction for Arnold Engineering Development Complex and worked with the Tennessee Valley Authority to create Woods Reservoir. Peggy attended Franklin County High School and graduated from the University of Tennessee with a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1957.

Peggy married her high school sweetheart, Heyward, in 1957, and he remained the love of her life until his death last fall. She accompanied him throughout his Air Force career, except for his tours in Korea and Vietnam. Peggy loved Air Force life, seizing opportunities wherever she landed: climbing Mt. Fujii in Japan, attending big-city concerts in New York and Philadelphia, trail-riding on horseback in West Texas.

After a stint as a reporter for the Chattanooga Times and administrative roles at Charleston Air Force Base in South Carolina and Goose Bay Air Base in Labrador, Peggy made motherhood and community volunteering her life’s work.

After Heyward’s retirement from the Air Force, he and Peggy settled in Parkersburg, West Virginia, where Peggy was an active member of the Parkersburg Women’s Club and Altar Guild at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, and served a term as president for her PEO sorority. One of her favorite roles was docent at Blennerhassett Historical Park, an island estate in the Ohio River.

Peggy loved music, dancing, movies, and eating out at restaurants. She had a mischievous, curious, fun-loving personality, and made an impression on all who met her. Her optimistic outlook and gusto for life inspired her family and friends.

In 2020, Peggy and Heyward moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina and enjoyed living in close proximity to daughter Kathy and her children. Peggy loved the beauty of Chapel Hill and was greatly attached to her caregivers. She was a devoted grandmother who took endless interest in the activities and accomplishments of each grandchild. With affection, we remember her generosity, her ready laugh, her sense of duty to family, and her desire to make every day a special occasion. She will be greatly missed.

A celebration of life will be held Friday, May 1, 2026, at 12 Noon at Walkers Funeral Home Chapel in Chapel Hill. The family will receive friends after the service. Walkers Funreal Home 15-501 North Chapel Hill, NC 27517.