A Carmel neighbor’s comment to Peri McMichael was all she needed to know about Peggy Reeves.

“When we moved (in 1997) and Peggy and her husband, Gene, were building their house across the street, the neighbor said, ‘You know a saint is moving in across the street from you,’” McMichael said. “She then told me about Peggy.”

Reeves, Carmel Clay Schools’ first kindergarten teacher who taught mostly at College Wood Elementary School, raised two daughters and assisted her husband after he sufferred disabilities from an automobile accident after they were married.

“In getting to know Peggy, I completely believed what this (neighbor) told me,” McMichael said. “I never heard Peggy have a cross word about anything. She was just the kindest soul. We became very close friends over the years.”

Reeves, who moved into The Barrington in Carmel soon after it opened, died Sept. 24 at age 93. Gene Reeves died in 2006.

McMichael said people frequently approached Reeves saying they or a family member had her as a teacher.

“It’s amazing how many people’s lives she touched over time,” McMichael said. “Then to have multiple generations of children in her classroom, she was like a second mom. She would tell people I was her adopted daughter. She was so loving and giving. It’s a huge loss in my life. We maintained a close friendship when she moved. I used to take her for hair appointment day on Fridays when she stopped driving. She was an incredibly kind, generous person who loved everyone.”

Carmel resident Mildred Moore heard plenty of positive stories about Reeves through the years. Moore’s husband, Jim Moore, was the founding principal of College Wood Elementary. Jim, who died in 2017, retired in 1995 after 31 years as College Wood principal. Reeves retired in June 1990.

“Peggy came over when the school opened, and she was with him the whole time before she retired,” Moore said. “She was a beautiful person. Every year I know my husband had many requests from parents wanting their children to be in her class.”

Moore said she kept in contact with Reeves through the years.

“She was a dear friend,” Moore said.

Reeves, who previously had been a third-grade teacher, started teaching kindergarten in 1962 at the old Carmel Junior High School building. Once kindergarten was approved and funded by the state of Indiana, she moved to College Wood Elementary in 1964.

During her tenure, she was awarded the Outstanding Elementary Education Award and the Superintendent’s Award.

Reeves’ daughter, Carmel resident Becky Weiseman, said her mom excelled at home, too.

“I would always say she was the best mother in the world,” Weiseman said. “She always told me to get my education.”

Even in her last year, when Reeves started having memory issues, Weiseman said she frequently encouraged workers at The Barrington.

Reeves’ sister, Debbie Sturdivant, lives in Nashville, Tenn. Weiseman is a speech pathologist in the public schools. Her sister did some teaching but is a retired medical technologist.

Reeves also is survived by five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.