Margaret Burris "Peggy" Umstead, 84, died April 22, 2007 at NC Memorial Hospital after a short illness. Peggy Umstead was born January 9, 1923 in Platteville, WI to the late Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Burris, Jr. Following graduation from Platteville High School, she attended Platteville State Teachers College and Groves-Barnhardt School for Secretaries. She joined the United States Marine Corps Women's Reserve as a corporal at Camp Lejeune. During her military service, she met Lt. Colonel Frank Graham Umstead of Chapel Hill, N.C. They married and settled in Chapel Hill, where she was a devoted wife for over 60 years, a loving mother, a dedicated grandmother and a loyal friend.
Mrs. Umstead is survived by her beloved husband, Frank Graham Umstead, of Chapel Hill; daughter, Margaret Umstead Cobb, of Chapel Hill; son, John Wesley Umstead, IV, and wife, Toni, of Raleigh; daughter, Helen Reade Umstead of Chapel Hill; brother, Donald Dean Burris of Wayne, PA; sister, Mary Burris Carthew, of Calabash; four grandchildren, Susannah Cobb Parker and husband Chris Parker of Atlanta, GA, Devon Umstead Brewer and husband Clate Brewer, Chloe Graham Umstead and John Wesley Umstead, V, all of the Raleigh area; and two great-grandchildren, James Heys Parker and Elizabeth Umstead Parker of Atlanta, GA.
A graveside service with military honors will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, April 28th at the Old Chapel Hill Cemetery with the Reverend Ruth Stevens of the University United Methodist Church, officiating.
In lieu of flowers, please make contributions in memory of Margaret Burris Umstead for the Visitor Education Center at the North Carolina Botanical Garden, Totten Center CB# 3375, UNC-CH 27599-3375, (919) 962-0522.
Arrangements are by the Cremation Society of The Carolinas, Raleigh, NC.
Published in The News & Observer on Apr. 25, 2007