Peggy Garner

Peggy Gibson Garner, 87, our beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, on Friday, Oct. 9, 2015, moved into the presence of Jesus, after an extended illness. There she joins her husband, Joe; son and daughter-in-law, Jerry and Ann; and great-grandson, Aiden Martin, who preceded her in death. She was a devout Christian, and was a loving inspiration to many throughout her life. She was a member of Fort Oglethorpe United Methodist Church, where she had belonged since 1985. She was a prayer warrior, and served for 20+ years with a prayer group in the Fort Oglethorpe area. Peggy was a homemaker for most of her life, but also did the bookkeeping for The Joe Garner Company, Inc., which she and Joe formed together in 1964. She was a strong matriarch of the Garner family, taking care of the children and grandchildren, and holding down the fort on the Garner corner. She always wanted to feed you when you came to her house. She loved her family, her church, her church family, and her neighbors. On her handwritten funeral instructions, she wrote, "Dont be sad that Im not here with you; you see, Im in the presence of our God." She also left us some wise advice: "Now that Im gone, each of you should call out to God daily on behalf of your children, grandchildren, wives and husbands, pleading the blood of Jesus over them to keep them safe from sickness, harm, and accident." She is survived by her children: a son, Jim Garner (Rita) of Ringgold, daughters, Pamper Garner Crangle (Tommy) of Signal Mountain and Kim Combs of Chattanooga; grandchildren, Jeff Garner (Traci), Jacob Garner (Lori), Leigh Garner Martin (Butch), Tyler Garner Howell (Lindsey), and Kati Schmidt (Bill); great-grandchildren, Caroline and Campbell Garner, Ava Rhea and Daxton Hyde Martin, Beck Satterfield Garner, and Oliver Garner Howell, and her beloved dog, Dinah. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association, 211 Center Park Drive, Suite 3010, Knoxville, TN 37922, www.diabetes.org or to St Judes, www.stjude.org. Visitation will be Sunday, Oct. 11, from 1-4:30 p.m. Funeral services will be at 5 p.m. in the funeral home chapel with the Rev. Tommy Messer officiating. The burial will be on Monday, Oct. 12, at 10 a.m. at Chattanooga National Cemetery with the Rev. Tommy Messer officiating; a processional will leave the funeral home at 9:30 a.m. Arrangements are by the Heritage Funeral Home, Battlefield Parkway, Fort Oglethorpe. The family would like to express their extreme gratitude to their Mamas doctor, Dr Kent Grotefendt and his nurse, Merlene, and her caregivers, Kesha Brown, Cheryl Frix, Erica Kelley, and Barb Pulver. Condolences may be sent at www.heritagefh.com.