Margaret D. "Peggy" Peter, a homemaker who was a beloved figure in her Academy Heights neighborhood, died July 5 of pneumonia at the Charlestown retirement community in Catonsville. She was 94.
The daughter of John Drach, a lawyer and former president of the Cleveland Stock Exchange, and Elsie Drach, a homemaker, Margaret Marie Drach was born in Cleveland and moved with her family in 1934 to Washington.
After her father lost his job in the wake of the stock market crash of 1929, he worked odd jobs before obtaining a position with the Internal Revenue Service in Washington.
"It was a terrible time," recalled Mrs. Peter in an interview last year at Charlestown. She said her family had tried to protect her from the struggles of the Depression.
"I remember that I used to play with cans in the pantry," she said. "That's all I remember of the Depression."
She attended what was then known as Immaculata Seminary in Washington, which in those days included elementary, secondary and postgraduate programs. The college closed in 1978, and the high school eight years later.
Mrs. Peter met her future husband, Maurice A. Peter, at a Catholic Student Mission Crusade dance in 1941.
"He asked me to dance, and while we were dancing, he left me in the middle of the dance floor," Mrs. Peter recalled in the interview. "I thought, 'What kind of schmo is this?' Eventually, I found him to be very caring, compassionate and very steady."
During World War II, she worked in Washington in the newly established Office of Civil Defense — whose assistant director was Eleanor Roosevelt.
One of her favorite memories, family members said, was observing President Harry S. Truman taking walks outside the agency's office.
Meanwhile, Mr. Peter graduated from college and during the war served in the Navy for three years in the South Pacific. When he returned home, the couple wed in 1946, and she quit working at OCD.
In 1950, they settled into a rowhouse on Greenlow Road in the then-new community of Academy Heights. There they raised their four children.
"It was nice because I wound up with two boys and two girls … four kept me busy," Mrs. Peter recalled in the Charlestown interview.
"I always knew I wanted to be a mother, even before I was thinking about a husband — because I thought my mother was wonderful. Very, very special. I wanted to be just like her," she said.
"They were one of the founding and original owners in Academy Heights," said Stan Burdette, a next-door neighbor.
Mrs. Peter was active in the Academy Heights Civic Association. She also volunteered at St. Agnes Elementary School, Archbishop Keough High School, Mount St. Joseph High School and Catonsville High School.
She was a well-known and popular figure in her neighborhood.
"She was compassionate and cared about everybody. She and her husband would have done anything for anybody," said Keri Shaner, an Academy Heights resident since 1999. "She was quiet until you got to know her. To me, she was like a grandmother."
Ms. Shaner said she always seemed to be sitting on her porch.
"She welcomed company and wanted people to come up and sit and talk with her," she said. "She made the neighborhood feel like home."
"Peggy was happy-go-lucky and very friendly. She and her husband were friendly people," said Marge Burdette, who is married to Stan Burdette.
"You couldn't beat them as neighbors. We were lucky to have them," said Mrs. Burdette, an Academy Heights resident since 1972.
"They got along with everyone and were one of the friendliest couples I've ever known," she said. "I never heard a cross word from her, and she didn't let things upset her. She loved children and was just kind to all," she said.
Beginning in the 1950s and continuing into the 1970s, Mrs. Peter and her husband were active square dancers. They participated in regional contests and hosted dances in their home.
Her husband, a salesman, died in 2005.
In 2012 Mrs. Peter moved to Charlestown, where she participated in social activities, enrolled in classes, and attended lectures and concerts.
She enjoyed traveling with her family to Ocean City, Disney World, and to Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia.
She was an avid fan of the Baltimore Orioles and "Downton Abbey," family members said. She also was a fan of classical music and liked reading novels.
"I'm not bored," she said in the interview. She noted that even though her eyesight had begun to decline, "I still read the Sunday New York Times. It's got all kinds of interesting articles. It usually takes me about a week to read it."
She had been a communicant of St. Agnes Roman Catholic Church.
A Mass of Christian burial will be offered at 11 a.m. Saturday at Our Lady of the Angels Chapel at Charlestown, 700 Maiden Choice Lane.
She is survived by two sons, James Peter of Catonsville and David Peter of New York City; two daughters, Lynne Toth of Upperco and Kathie Schaefer of Glen Burnie; four grandchildren; and a great-grandson.