Peggy Day Corrigan, beloved mother, grandmother, friend, teacher, master gardener, and so much more, died peacefully at her home in Acworth on Thursday surrounded by her two- and four-legged children. She was 75. The cause was breast cancer.
Born on November 27, 1941 in Jackson, Alabama to Preston Boyce Day and Dixie Blair Day, Peggy grew up in Grove Hill and Bay Minette, Alabama and graduated from Auburn University in 1964 with a bachelor of science degree in education. She then moved to Jacksonville, Florida for her first teaching job with a 6th grade class. She met her future husband, Alan Corrigan, in the apartment complex in which they both lived, and the two wed on December 18, 1965.
After living for several years in Jacksonville, the couple moved to South Carolina and then back to Florida, having three children along the way. In 1979, the family of five moved to the northwestern Atlanta suburbs, where Peggy and Alan remained.
Following time off work to raise their kids, Peggy returned to teaching in the early '80s in the Cherokee County school system. She spent most of the rest of her career teaching 1st and 2nd grades at L.R. Tippens Elementary, with the final two years in the early intervention program at William H. Hasty Elementary.
A talented green thumb, Peggy pursued her long-time goal of becoming a master gardener in her retirement. She and Alan also embarked on many long-awaited travels during this time, including several trips up and down the East Coast to New England and back, always stopping through New York City and Washington, DC along the way to see their children and grandchildren; the trip of a lifetime to Japan to visit their daughter Diana and her family; and their annual trip to their favorite spot in Daytona Beach. They were also both active volunteers with the Cherokee County Democrats and the Kennesaw-Acworth Optimist Club.
In addition to her family, Peggy had many loves, including her dogs, taking long walks (especially along the beach while collecting shells), music of all genres, chocolate, cooking, kids, and helping others. She was a strong, independent, funny, fearless woman who was dearly beloved and will be missed by many.
Along with her parents, Peggy is preceded in death by her husband, John Alan Corrigan, and her brother George Day.
Peggy is survived by her brother, Harry Day, of Bay Minette; three children, Diana Corrigan, currently living in the Philippines, and Maura Corrigan and Sean Corrigan of Brooklyn, New York; and her two grandchildren, Aidan Blair Bakewell and Adeline Olive Bakewell, both living in the Philippines.
A celebration of life service will be held at 2:30 p.m on Wednesday, January 25 in the chapel of the Winkenhofer Pine Ridge Funeral Home, with Deb Jenkins officiating. A visitation will begin at 1:30 p.m., and following the service, friends are cordially invited to a reception for Peggy at the Winkenhofer Pine Ridge 1890 House.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Peggy's name to the American Cancer Society or Live Safe Resources (https://www.LiveSafeResources.org), formerly the YWCA of Northwest Georgia.
Please visit www.winkenhoferpineridgefuneralhome.com to share memories and leave condolences for the family.
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