Peggy Marie Meyer

Peggy M. Meyer

Peggy Marie Meyer, age 77, of Plover died peacefully on March 3, 2023. Eric Meyer, her loving son and primary caregiver, was with her when she passed. Peggy was diagnosed with liver cancer in July 2022 and lived in at-home hospice care for the nine months that followed. Peggy's resilience during the time of her illness inspired all who knew her.  Until her final month of life, she was active with tasks around her home and property.

Peggy was born on August 18, 1945 in St. Paul, Minnesota. She was the daughter of the late Arthur J. and Helen M. (Siegel) Ryan. She graduated from Ramsey High School in Roseville, Minnesota in 1963.  She later moved to Superior, Wisconsin, with her then-husband, Gary C. Meyer, in 1973. There, she earned her bachelor's degree in art education from the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

In 1980, Peggy moved to Stevens Point, where she eventually obtained a master's degree in art education from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.  Peggy was a passionate, award-winning art teacher and life-long advocate for arts education, touching the lives of countless students. She taught at several schools in Central Wisconsin but spent the majority of her career at Humke Elementary, where she worked for more than 10 years. In the early 1990s, she served as the local Youth Art Month Chairperson, which entailed finding prominent ways to feature—and celebrate—students' artwork during Youth Art Month in March.

She was one of only four people in the country to receive the National Council for Art Education Youth Art Month award of excellence in 1994. The award recognized her work on the Wisconsin Youth Art Month Capitol Exhibit on March 5, 1994, which consisted of over 350 juried pieces of student art. About 750 parents, students, administrators and teachers attended the exhibit's opening in Madison. Later in her career, Peggy was one of a small group of individuals selected to participate in a teacher exchange with a community in Japan. In this capacity, Peggy traveled to Japan to visit a school and share her ideas about how to achieve quality art education.

In addition to teaching art, Peggy was an inspired artist. She specialized in making abstract expressionist handmade paper and exhibited her art across the state of Wisconsin. She participated in many groups for artists, such as the local Brush and Palette club. Peggy started her career in the arts as a singer. She had a lovely soprano voice and sang in choirs in high school and later into her life, including one that traveled twice to Europe. She chaired the Stevens Point Area Symphony Orchestra Guild for many years and in so doing, raised funds and awareness for local orchestral music. She particularly loved opera music and for many years traveled monthly to attend opera performances in Milwaukee.

In the later part of her life, Peggy embarked on a new career as a spiritual healer and counselor. A woman with strong faith in God, she sought to improve mental health through art and drawing on spiritual energies. She owned Art's Healing Way, an art-inspired counseling school, and always had time to listen to the concerns of those who needed help.

Peggy's survivors include her two children, Eric John Meyer of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota and Jennine Rachel Meyer of Bethesda, Maryland and two grandsons, Noam Meyer Kagan and Theo Meyer Kagan.

Peggy was preceded in life by her parents and her brother, Patrick, and sister, Nancy Ryan

Peggy was married to Gary C. Meyer from 1968 to 2004; the two remained friends following their divorce.

Peggy will be remembered for her kindness, generosity, charisma, and thirst for fun and adventure. Upon winning her national Youth Art Month award, she told The Stevens Point Journal , "I believe celebrations such as YAM [Youth Art Month] can promote desire in young people to continue trying until they finally feel that awe experience. A deep satisfaction in having reached a healthy peak experience while gaining knowledge about themselves and their world could not be a greater learning experience."

The family would like to thank Trisha Allen of Plover for the compassionate in-home care she provided to Peggy during her last weeks of life. The family is also grateful for the warm, attentive care Peggy received from the Aspirus hospice team.

A Memorial Service/Celebration of Life will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Saturday, March 25, at the Pisarski Community Funeral Home in Plover. Visitation will be at 10:00 A.M. at the funeral home until the time of services. Pastor Michah Schlobohn will officiate. The Pisarski Funeral Home is honored to be serving the family. Online condolences may be sent by visiting www.pisarskifuneralhome.com In lieu of flowers, the family kindly suggests donations to Art in Action: https://artinaction.org  or the Florentine Opera Company: www.florentineopera.org.