Nell Catherine (Curtis) Peters, 91, West Plains, Missouri, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, December 28, 2022, at her residence, with her family by her side. Nell was currently living at Cedarhurst Assisted Living of West Plains. Nell was born in Springfield, Missouri, on September 11, 1931, to parents C. Dan Curtis and Margaret Paynter Curtis. Camille, Nell's only sibling, came along nine years later. She attended McDaniel Elementary School, Greenwood Lab School and graduated from Springfield Senior High School in 1949. She was a naturally social person and was involved in many clubs and activities, including cheerleading and dramatics. Nell then attended Drury College, studying toward a degree in elementary education. She was a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority while at Drury. It was while at Drury that Nell met James C. Peters, a star member of the college's basketball team. The couple married on June 10, 1951. As Jim pursued a career in education and coaching, he and Nell lived in several towns, including Halfway, Missouri, and Mountain Home, Arkansas, before settling in West Plains, their permanent home. She was a member of the First United Methodist Church in West Plains, Chapter CM of the P.E.O. Sisterhood, and was always a strong supporter of her children's schools. She was also an occasional substitute teacher in local elementary schools. She was an avid bridge player and was a wonderful cook. Nell enjoyed time spent at the family's cabin on the Norfork River at Dawt. In her later years, she especially enjoyed watching professional tennis and other sports on television and reading good books. Nell and Jim enjoyed 57 years together before his passing in 2008. She was also preceded in death by her parents; and a granddaughter, Brittany Hogue. She is survived by her sister, Camille Ricketts and husband, Bill; son, Jim Peters and wife, Beth; daughter, Sherry Underwood; three grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren, Andrew Peters, wife Emily and daughters Ava Jane, Anna Beth and Mary Nell, Julie Peters Gower, husband Jeffrey and their children, Ella Grace and William Gower, and Courtney Booher and husband Bryce, and Courtney's children, Audrey and Hunter Jensen. Burial in Oak Lawn Cemetery.
Published in Springfield News-Leader, Dec 30, 2022