Margaret “Peggy” Mary Van Blaricom, 83, of Ottumwa, Iowa passed away on July 15, 2023 at the Iowa Lutheran Hospital in Des Moines. She was born on November 4, 1939 in Waterloo, Iowa to Nick Donald and Mary Louise Rouse Moos. She graduated from Ottumwa High School in 1958. Peggy married William Lester Morehouse in 1967 and he passed away in 1980. She married Lloyd McAllister Sr. in 1983, they later divorced. She married Paul Van Blaricom in 1990, they later divorced.
In the 1960’s, Peggy worked at the North Shore Sentinel Newspaper in San Diego, California. She moved back to the Ottumwa area in the 1970’s and worked for the Wapello County Sheriff’s office for several years. She then worked at SEIDA in Ottumwa before working at Excel until her retirement.
Peggy was full of life and loved to laugh with family and friends. She enjoyed spending time with her family, playing BINGO, cooking, and spending time with her pets. She was a lifelong baseball fan and had many great memories of keeping score when her brother, Ron, played baseball. Peggy has lived at Vista Woods in Ottumwa the last several years. She will be greatly missed by her family and friends.
She is survived by two sons, Bill (Heather) Morehouse, Eddie (Julie) McAllister both of Ottumwa; granddaughter, Amanda (Kyle) Berry of Ottumwa; and a brother, Ron Moos of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, William Morehouse; son, Kevin Morehouse; granddaughter, Amaya Melissa McAllister; grandson, Peyton Cotter McAllister; and a brother, Don Moos.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 19, 2023 at the Drakesville Cemetery in Drakesville, Iowa. Pastor Tom Shipley will officiate. Visitation will begin at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday with the family present to greet friends from 5-7:00 p.m. at the Wagler Funeral Home in Bloomfield. A memorial has been established to the Heartland Humane Society in Ottumwa.
