Peggy Marie LemonA star in the sky became quite a bit brighter on May 26 when Peggy Lemon’s spirit ascended into heaven to the side of the Lord. Like everything she touched here on earth, she is sure to brighten the heavens also.
Peggy gave unconditional love to all her family and friends. She was a great listener and gave advice that fixed the problem. She refused to give up on anyone, no matter how bad the situation. She had no enemies. Everybody liked her and admired her and valued her opinions and sage advice. She was a kind, intelligent, compassionate, generous confidante and a best friend to many people.
Peggy was born to Clell and Phyllis Schwartz in Glendale, Calif., on July 14, 1938. She has one younger brother, Steve Schwartz, who now lives with his wife, Robbie, in Pagosa Springs.
She grew up in San Bernardino, Calif., and graduated from Pacific High School, where she was an honor student and a cheerleader. Peggy enrolled in the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho, where she met her future husband, Bryant Lemon, who graduated the next year in civil engineering. They married in 1958.
She followed her construction engineer husband all over the U.S., offering back-room advice on the building of some of the major projects of the time. In moving from place to place, she made many friends, many of which are close friends to this day. Among the places where the couple lived were Rigby, Idaho; Alexandria, Va.; Boise, Idaho; Round Mountain, Calif. (Pit 6 and 7 Dams on the Pit River); Cape Kennedy, Fla. (NASA’s Launch Complex 39 “Moon Shot” Facility); Batavia, Ill. (Fermi Lab-200 BeV Proton Accelerator); Wilton, Ct. (NY Giants Football Stadium at the Meadowlands, N.J.); Birmingham, Ala. (Bowater Paper Mill in Calhoun, Tenn.); and Albuquerque, N.M. (Intel’s Fab 7, 9 and 11 in Rio Rancho, N.M.).
During these early years, she raised four wonderful and successful children: Christine Lemon Schmidt, of Chandler, Ariz.; and Bill Lemon, Catherine Lemon and Karen Lemon-Gebhardt, all of Albuquerque. She is also the grandmother of five wonderful grandchildren: Patrick and Jacob Lemon, of Albuquerque; Christian and Michael Schmidt, of Santa Maria, Calif., and Chandler, Ariz.; and William Gebhardt, of Albuquerque. She has one niece, Tiffani Schwartz Miller, and two nephews, Darren Schwartz and Douglas Saylor, all residing in California.
Peggy was a businesswoman and an entrepreneur. Besides being a major impetus behind the starting and managing of BRYCON Const. Co. in New Mexico, for which she was secretary/treasurer, she started and operated two other successful businesses. The first was Microwave Cooking, Etc. in Birmingham, Ala. The second was Zia Rentals, a construction equipment rental business in New Mexico. Peggy was a designer/builder/remodeler. Being the eternal “Live Wire” that she was, she designed and construction managed the building of a beautiful home in Corrales and a magnificent mountain forest lodge in Pagosa Springs. The latter is known in the family as “Peg’s Mud Mountain Resort.” She had many good times at Mud Mountain. Once she had finished construction, she could not stop thinking of how it might be improved. She was uncanny in her ability to visualize a structure “in the mind’s eye” and see simple improvements and modifications. This resulted in expansion projects for more bedrooms, bathrooms and living spaces and garages. Also, remodels of bedrooms, closets, baths and game rooms. Of course, interior decoration was also a piece of this talent and Peggy was great at it.
Peggy was a world traveler. She arranged trips to South America (Cusco and Machu Picchu in Peru, the Galapagos Islands off Equador, trout fishing in southern Chile and tasting Malbec in Mendoza, Argentina). Just last summer, she cruised the Danube through Eastern Europe. She found grizzlies in Alaska; elephants, lions and rhinos in Africa; whale sharks off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. She roamed the ancient ruins and cathedrals of Italy, Greece and Turkey. She loved the beautiful countryside of France; the fascinating areas of the Alps and Germany. She particularly enjoyed a Hertigruten cruise along the fjords of Norway and north of the Arctic Circle. She took all of her children and their families to Fiji and on a large sailing ship through the Caribbean.
Peggy was into sports. She loved to ski. Her favorite run was the “Wizard” at Santa Fe Ski Area. She was good. She won the N.M. State Championship in the finals of her age group at the Dr. Pepper Race Series held at Angel Fire. Her two favorite teams to watch were the Lady Lobos’ basketball team and the Boise State Broncos football team. She shouted like crazy for both.
A memorial service will be held for all of Peggy’s friends and relatives at the Episcopal Church in Albuquerque on July 17. Specifics of the exact time and arrangements will be announced when finalized. A reception in her honor will also be held on July 17. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be given to the American Lung Association or to a charity of your choice.
