Peggy was born on June 26, 1936 in Park City, Utah to Harold and Waldine Sorensen. She was the eldest of five children. She grew up in Talmadge, Utah, and graduated from Altamont High School in 1954.
She married Robert N. Cooper in June 1954 and moved to Loma, Colorado, where they started their family. Peggy and Bob had five children: Janice, Donna, Robert, Margaret and Alan. The family later moved to Fruita, Colorado, where they started a small farm. She began a career in nursing and worked at the Mesa County Hospital until moving to Pagosa Springs, Colorado, in 1970. Peggy worked for the Pagosa School District until she retired.
She will always be remembered for her love of genealogy. She traveled the United States investigating cemeteries for graves of relatives. She and her sister, Elaine, even traveled to Europe in search of a distant forefather.
Peggy said she loved to garden and can for the winter months, but through the weeding, hoeing and canning, there were misunderstandings of the word “love”. She loved the San Juan Mountains and her many, many friends there and spoke of them to the end.
She moved to Sidney, Montana, in July 2023 to be near her son. In Sidney, she met another world of friends. Everywhere Peggy went she talked to people and would ask their name and question them about their family and where they grew up – more of that genealogy quiz business.
She spent her last year at Sidney Extended Care, where she made many friends that will never be forgotten. She was well loved and received excellent care to the end. She passed quietly on February 5, 2026, after a short battle with cancer.
Peggy is preceded in death by her husband, Robert. N. Cooper; son, Robert Brian; daughter, Donna Rae; parents Harold and Waldine Sorensen; brother, Bill Sorensen; sister, LaRae Fowler and brother-in-law, Nolan Shumway. She is survived by sisters Elaine Shumway and Arda (Vaughn) Higbee; sister-in-law, Karen Sorensen; brother-in-law, Don Fowler; son, Alan; daughters, Janice and Margaret; granddaughters Lauryn Cooper (Cole Quenzer), Alexa (Jake) Welch, Brooklynn (Connor) DeWine; Katie (Micah) Retzlaff; Bailey (Frank) Broadwater; Bobby Bliss; great grandchildren: Oliver, Ivan, Maksim and Finnley Welch; Cooper DeWine; Noah, Jonah, Jeremiah and Judah Retzlaff; Finn and Luna Broadwater; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Peggy will be taken home to Pagosa Springs, Colorado to be buried next to her daughter, Donna, and husband, Robert, at the family plot. The service date has not yet been decided.