Peters, Delores Sylvia

Dolores Sylvia Peters, 95, formerly of Floyd, passed away Friday, March 23, 2007 in Martinsville, her home for the past four years.

She was born on November 7, 1911 in New Bedford, Massachusetts, the oldest daughter of Julius Vargus and Maria Moniz Sylvia. She graduated from Framingham College, Massachusetts with a B.S. Degree in Education.

Early in her career, she trained in nursing at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and did nursing in Massachusetts and Lewis-Gale Hospital in Roanoke, Virginia. When the family moved to Roanoke in 1943, she began teaching at Back Creek Elementary School and retired thirty years later from the chemistry department of Cave Spring High School.

While teaching, she served as faculty representative for several years to the Virginia Education Association and on the School Superintendent’s Advisory Council under Dr. Herman Horne. She was named to Who’s Who of American Women by Roanoke City teachers in 1972.

Throughout her life, she exhibited an artistic talent for painting, needlework and weaving as well as an avid interest in antiques. On retirement, she taught handicraft classes at the Roanoke County Library. Among her projects was the designing of the Centennial Quilt for the library and supervising the class members in its making.

After moving to Floyd County, she worked with the Floyd County Women’s club to establish a county public library, serving as its first volunteer librarian in a house behind the fire station and later when it was moved to the courthouse. She was a member of the Montgomery-Floyd Library Board of Trustees for several years.

Dolores was a charter member of the Lambda Chapter of Alpha Delta Kappa, the honorary teachers’ sorority, serving in offices at both the local and state level and was a life member at the national level.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Belford E. Peters; daughter, Virginia Lee Peters; brother, Julius L. Sylvia; sister, Inez Burghart. Surviving are her son and daughter-in-law, Randolph B. and Mabel C. Peters, Martinsville, Va.,; grandchildren, Conrad Lewis Peters, Richmond, Va., Diane (Mrs. Matthew) Busch, Durham, N.C.; great-grandchildren, Celeste and Anton Busch. Other surviving relatives are Mary Ann (Mrs. Leeson) Peters, Alvis and Mary Lou Kelley, all of Floyd, Virginia (Mrs. Tracy) Peters, Roanoke, as well as a number of nieces and nephews.

A graveside service will be held at 11:30 on Monday, March 26, 2007 at the Peters Family Cemetery, on Silver Leaf Road in Floyd. The family will receive friends on Monday at Gardner Funeral Home from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorials be made to the Floyd County Rescue Squad, P. O. Box 257, Floyd, Va. 24091. Arrangements by Gardner Funeral Home, Floyd.