Mrs. Peggy Roop Crawford

Peggy Roop Crawford, longtime resident, beloved friend and neighbor, mother figure to the community and a central figure in Bowdon, Georgia’s modern business history, passed away Tuesday at the age of 85. Born Peggy Louise Roop, August 11, 1938, she was a familiar figure around town, even as a child and adolescent. She could be seen riding her pony, bareback around town, visiting the banks and businesses where her family, family friends and neighbors kept post war Bowdon booming. She was also a frequent, and often stowaway, passenger on the legendary local train engine known as the “Bowdon Doogie” on its daily trips between our town and nearby Bowdon Junction. A tomboy while young, she matured into a spirited high school beauty queen, majorette and band member. Marrying her high school sweetheart, the era’s standout sports hero, their wedding was a melding between one of the town’s most influential families and a stalwart farming bloodline, the Styles, at the town’s rural border. The wedding was the talk of the region. Starting a family at the age of 22 with the birth of her son Jeff, she was a dedicated mother and stay at home wife in the early 1960’s. Peggy followed her husband’s career path to Fairborn, Ohio in 1967 immediately following the birth of her daughter Diane. Raising her children in a picture postcard suburban setting during one of the greatest periods of social change in American history, she was surrounded by a remarkable mix of international languages and customs from every corner of the globe due to the largely military population of the nearby Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Young enough to love the Beatles and wear the changing fashions of the day like a model, she never lost her southern roots or sensibilities and her children enjoyed an upbringing with strong, traditional family values. Upon moving back to the south in 1974, Peggy re-entered the work force of the still male dominated field of banking and rose through the ranks of West Georgia’s financial world like a diminutive, well dressed rocket. Smiling all the way. In fact, most of her customers and coworkers remember her smile above all else. But don’t let that pleasant demeanor fool you. She was a shrewd business woman with a hard edge when it was needed. The epitome of the phrase, later popularized by first lady Rosalyn Carter…”steel magnolia”…Peggy was a force to be reckoned with. All while being socially accepted and welcomed by virtually everyone from every corner of our increasingly diverse community. Beginning as a teller at West Georgia National Bank in 1974, her easy going but straight-to-the-point manner literally created lines at her window by people who strictly wanted to deal with “Miss Peggy”. Then after being promoted to loan office, she helped establish and launch the brand new Bank of Carroll County in 1978. It was a booming success. She then graduated to the title of Executive Vice President of what began as the Citizens Bank and Trust, now Synovus. Tying the final bow on a storied career, she retired as an Executive Vice President of C.B.&T in 2001. It was during that period that she also entered an entirely new phase of her life with her marriage to Keith Crawford. A few years her junior, her relationship with Keith seemed to grant her a new lease on youth. Her outward lifestyle suddenly matched her evergreen, young-at-heart spirit. Her zest for life seemed to expand exponentially. Traveling more than ever and taking on new hobbies and challenges. So, while many of her peers were still laboring toward the tail end of their careers or resting on their laurels, she once again re-invented herself as a full-time grandmother and part-time (equal parts) farm wife, trout fisher, outdoor enthusiast and equestrian, even competing in endurance rides with her adoring husband. Her love for family and friends was unmatched. She was fiercely loyal. She was the sun in her own children’s orbit. And her children’s friends were always treated as her own. By their own words over recent days, she was remembered as the rare parent that saw them as more than kids, treating them like the soon-to-be adults they were racing to become. Talk to those closest to Jeff and Diane and they all agree that many of their best memories include Peggy to this day. Her home was always a magnet to young and old alike, whatever the season. But during the holidays it more closely resembled a portrait by Norman Rockwell. A Hallmark movie. Everyone was welcome and became part of the inner circle. It often resembled an “island of misfit toys” that had no other place to go, offering a warm welcome, a full belly and a happy heart. Perhaps it is fitting that she left this world, exhausted from a life well lived and complete confidence in her next destination, on the day before Thanksgiving. She played golf, tennis and, for years hosted meetings of other local women in something called The Canasta Club. Her children remembers them chatting away and laughing loudly but rarely actually playing cards. She loved people. Peggy is preceded in death by her father Bill Roop, mother Jett Roop, brother David and sister Patti Roop. Along with her beloved grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, who did double duty as best friends, and countless thankful residents of our community who owed their homes, businesses and livelihoods to her hand ups (Not hand outs. Do NOT miss a payment and make her come looking for you)…there was, indeed, a joyful reunion in heaven when she left her earthly body behind. There has never been one like her. And there will never be another. Anyone who knew her was blessed. Peggy leaves behind her husband Keith, son Jeff Styles, daughter Diane Styles Smith, grandsons Eli and Lucas Durham-Styles, granddaughters Payton Smith Snider and Anna Smith. As well as step grandsons Caleb Turner, Cody Keith, step daughters Rhiannon and Alicia Pelton and one step-grandson Imani Pelton. There will be no viewing. Visitation and memorial will take place at the chapel of the Rainwater Funeral Home, Highway 100, in Bowdon, at 1pm, Sunday, December 3. The final service will follow immediately at 2pm. In accordance with her wishes, her body was cremated.

Mrs. Peggy Roop Crawford

August 11, 1938 - November 21, 2023

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Mrs. Peggy Roop Crawford

August 11, 1938 - November 21, 2023

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