d. May 30, 2012 Tucson, Arizona
When Peggy married Jay, he was an officer and pilot in the United States Air Force. They were a strong Christian family. Jay advanced to the rank of Colonel, and flew an F-4 Phantom Fighter Jet during the Vietnam War; he was shot down over North Vietnam on November 25, 1968. He and his co- pilot, Sam D. Francisco, successfully ejected from the jet and landed somewhere in North Vietnam's jungle and Jay was classified as MIA (Missing In Action) for over 24 years. Peggy was part of the POW/MIA Wives organization that kept the public informed about their family members. They were in constant communication with U.S. military leaders, Senators and Congressman to take action on getting a full accounting of POW/MIA soldiers. In 1992, the Missing Persons Department of the Air Force presented Peggy and her family with pictures of Jay lying dead in the North Vietnam jungle after he had a "shoot out" with the Viet Cong soldiers, some of whom were also killed. Peggy was able to share her story on a national public radio station, in the New York Times, and in Good Housekeeping magazine about being a military wife and mother of two children with a husband MIA in Vietnam. She touched many lives in positive ways as people and soldiers communicated with her during that time.
Peggy passed away at the age of 79 in Tucson. Her husband Jay is buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C. and a memorial stone will be placed for him in the Gates family plot at Black Oak Cemetery. Peggy was the mother of David Jed Morrison and Cynthia 'Cindy' Ann Morrison McClanahan.
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