Peggy Sue Cooley

Peggy Sue Cooley passed away peacefully on May 4, 2026 just a week after celebrating her 90th birthday. Peggy was born on April 27,1936 in Sweetwater, TN to Samuel Otha Cooley and Goldie Lee Tennyson. From a young age, Peggy was a very caring and inclusive person. On one occasion, her mother told Peggy to invite one friend to dinner for her 6th birthday. Instead, Peggy showed up with the entire first grade class. As a graduate of Sweetwater High School in 1954, she was voted Football Queen, Miss SHS, Most Courteous, Best Looking, Sweetest, and Best Natured. After high school, she attended the University of Tennessee and East Tennessee State before moving to NYC. There, she found an apartment on Lexington Ave and a job at Pan American Airlines where she stayed for the next 12 years. One perk was being able to travel first class at little cost, and in 1962 Peggy invited her mom, Goldie, to join her on a trip around the world. Peggy married and had two children, Jennifer Ceran and Daryl Brown. She spent the next 30 years living in Greenwich, CT and raising her kids. An avid painter in the Grandma Moses style, she was thrilled that one of her paintings “Bringing Home the Tree” was selected as a Unicef Christmas card in 1986. After her kids were grown, Peggy moved to Florida and spent her later years enjoying the warmer weather, traveling with friends/family and helping care for her grandchildren. In 2021, she returned to Tennessee. Peggy is survived by her children, son-in-law Erol, daughter-in-law Susie, sister Pat Richesin, brothers Mickey and Jack Cooley and many nieces and nephews. She also has 4 granddaughters: Heather, Ashley, Courtney and Caroline, and a great granddaughter Sophie. She is looking forward to being reunited with her Mom, Dad, sister Linda and brothers Cody and Daris as well as many friends and East Tennessee kinfolk from the Cooley, Tennyson, Wilson and Lemons families. Peggy wishes to thank all of her caregivers and Gentiva hospice for their help and support these past few years. Please remember Peggy by doing a kind deed for someone and knowing, above all things, love is what matters most. A celebration of life service will be conducted at a later date. Kyker Funeral Homes, Sweetwater, in charge of arrangements. www.kykerfuneralhomes.com

Peggy Sue Cooley

April 27, 1936 - May 4, 2026