Peggy Howard, University of Alabama graduate, taught more than 30 years, enjoyed family, music, travel

Obituary posted by Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home.

Peggy Howard
August 28, 1953 – December 27, 2013

Margaret W. (Peggy) Jenkins Howard was taken from us on Friday, December 27, 2013. A beloved wife, mother, friend, and kindergarten teacher, Peggy was a gentle, loving, and giving soul.

She was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina on August 28, 1953 to Harry and Margaret Jenkins, and attended public schools in Birmingham, Alabama, until she entered the University of Alabama, where she received bachelor and master degrees in education. Through the years Peggy also did further graduate work in art history at the University of Alabama and Columbia University in New York. Among the fondest memories of Peggy’s youth were the friendships she made and continued to maintain throughout her life, and her studies and travels abroad in Europe while at university.

After graduating from college, Peggy began teaching kindergarten in Birmingham. During this time, she met the love of her life, Mark Lee Howard. Peggy married Mark on October 18, 1986 at First Presbyterian Church in Sylacauga, Alabama. After Mark completed his law degree at Cumberland School of Law, the couple moved to Austin, where Peggy began teaching for the Leander Independent School District, initially teaching at Cypress Elementary and later joining the faculty at Steiner Ranch Elementary School when it opened in 1996; Peggy taught at Steiner Ranch until her death.

In 1988, Peggy was elated to welcome her first son, Bram Lee Howard. Second son Satchel Luc Howard was born in 1991. The happy family seemed complete, but was again blessed in 1995 with a third boy, Cale Alvis Howard.

As a teacher for more than 30 years, Peggy touched the lives of hundreds of students and their parents. She reached a milestone in her career when she began to teach the children of former students.

As a mother, Peggy was the very definition of selflessness, always putting the needs of her three sons first. She was a gentle guide and teacher to the rambunctious boys, maintaining a calm and smiling demeanor when a lesser woman would have snapped or snarled — and she was able to do so AFTER a long day of guiding and teaching five-year-olds.

As a wife, Peggy was the solid rock at the center of Mark’s life. The two shared a love for the arts, music, food, and travel, but mostly for each other, their family and their extended family of friends.

Peggy’s parents are both deceased. She is survived by her husband Mark and her two oldest sons, Bram and Satchel, as well as by her stepmother Becky Jenkins and her older brother Tommy Jenkins.

Peggy’s life will be celebrated, along with that of her youngest son Cale, in a service at Austin Baptist Church at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 4, 2014. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made in Peggy’s memory to the American Cancer Society or the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM).

Memorial Service

Saturday, January 04
2:00 PM