Peggy P. Schlichtemeier

Peggy P. Schlichtemeier, 71, of Sedona Arizona, passed away on February 11, 2021 after a short battle with Leukemia.

Peggy was born on May 4, 1949 in Lincoln, Nebraska, the second of eleven children to Russell and Jean Reinig. After graduating from Pius X High School, Lincoln, NE, in 1967, she pursued a degree in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. Following that, Peg moved to Taiwan for a year before returning to the States and worked for Goodyear as a manager in their quality control department. It was there she met the love of her life, Ernie Schlichtemeier. They married in 1979 and thereafter began the numerous worldwide residences to which Goodyear assigned Ernie. She was a devoted wife and looked at every move as an opportunity to make their new location better than it was before they arrived. Peg left her mark in Newton, KS, Marietta, GA, Canal Fulton, OH (where she volunteered as the activities director of a nursing home and taught at a prison), Mendota, IL (where she opened her own business, Kids’ Stuff, and was very active in the Jr. Women’s Club), Chatham, Canada (where she learned to speak French), Sao Paulo, Brazil (where she learned to speak Portuguese and Spanish), Lincoln, NE, Norfolk, NE (where at age 44 she drove to Vermillion, SD every week to earn her Master’s Degree so she could teach at the college level, which she then did at Wayne State College, Wayne, NE), Ching Dao, China (where she learned Chinese, was editor of the ExPat newsletter, and was a leader in a group that raised money for children’s school supplies), Raleigh, NC (where she again taught at the prison), Almaty, Kazakhstan (where she learned to speak Russian and was the Chairperson of the Business Department at KIMEP University), back to Ching Dao, China, (editor of the ExPat newsletter again), then Quinta, Ecuador (where she taught English), and after retiring, she and Ernie settled in Beaufort, SC (where she was a political leader who recruited volunteers for the voting polls), with their final stop being Sedona, AZ, (where she was very active in the Sedona Women’s Club and Rotary Club.) Additional international travels included Australia, Thailand, Greece, France, Egypt, Argentina, Peru and Mexico, to name a few.

She was a road rally navigator, first mate sailor, scuba diver, water skier, snow skier, excellent seamstress and a tireless volunteer.

Perhaps her most lasting legacy was the development and creation of First Books of Beaufort, SC and Verde Valley First Books in Sedona, AZ, which put new books into the hands of over 1300 preschool aged at risk children to date, and is still growing.

She lived by her favorite quote from Mother Teresa: “We can do no great things; only small things with great love.”

Peg was preceded in death by her parents, Russell and Jean Reinig; brothers, Mike Reinig, Charles Reinig, Dave Reinig and Tom Reinig.

Survivors cherishing her memory include her husband, Ernie Schlichtemeier; his children Rick Schlichtemeier, Terri Koster, and Julie Sitzmann; siblings Kathy (Dave) Dixon, Robert (Evelyn) Reinig, Paul Reinig, Mary (Wes) Carlton, Dan Reinig, and Jeri (Bob) Bierbower; brother-in-law Gary (Nadine) Schlichtemeier; sister-in-law Norma (Gus) Knollenberg; grandchildren Elizabeth Hopkins, Danielle Mulcahey and Ryan Mulcahey; numerous nieces and nephews and their families.

A private family service will be held at a later date. Memorial contributions are suggested to First Books of Beaufort, P.O. Box 291, Port Royal, SC, 29935. Condolences may be left for the family at Greer’s Mortuary and Crematory, Sedona, AZ, www.greersmortuary.com.

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