Margaret (Peggy) Payne passed away unexpectedly Sunday morning, September 9th 2018, at Huntersville Oaks skilled nursing facility. Mrs. Payne was born in Johnson City, NY on June 10, 1941 to the late Max Dustin Sweet and Margaret Grey Sweet. She received a bachelor’s degree from Russell Sage College in Troy, NY and a Master’s degree in Cardiovascular Nursing from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Her career in nursing took her from assistant head nurse in the post-op open heart unit at New York Hospital – Cornell in New York City to head nurse in the medical ICU at the VA hospital in Miami, FL, before moving on to Duke University Medical Center where she worked as the nursing supervisor of the ER. She then went on to work as head nurse of the Coronary Care Unit at Charlotte Memorial Hospital (now Carolinas Medical Center) where she was the CV Clinical Specialist and then Associate Director of Nursing. In 1979 Mrs. Payne began teaching in the College of Nursing at UNC-Charlotte, and married her late husband Robert Payne.
She retired from nursing several years later, after her son was born. Mrs. Payne was generous of her time and abilities, and often volunteered in the community. She served as a PTA President and reading tutor, among her other activities at the school.
She took part in the Symphony Auxiliary, served as Medical Auxiliary Endowment Board President, and was the first chairman of the Mecklenburg County Recycling Committee. She most recently worked as a guardian ad litem for children in Iredell County. Peggy was an avid reader and an amazing cook.
In her retirement she loved to watch old movies, and she was quite good at solving the occasional crossword puzzle. She was an easy conversationalist with a brilliant mind, and a natural leadership ability. Peggy was a kind and giving person.
Despite being beset by health problems in her later years, she always managed to maintain a cheerful outlook, and always took interest in the lives of the people around her. She was loved by many, and she will be missed greatly. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Payne.
She is survived by her son, Benjamin Payne of Mooresville; brothers, Lawrence Sweet of Denver, NC, and Max Dustin Sweet of Huntersville; and sister, Sally Sweet Schlichenmaier of Orlando, FL. A memorial service for Mrs. Payne will be held at 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Mooresville, 454 Fieldstone Rd 28115. The family will receive friends at the church beginning at 1:00 p.m. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorials be made to the church, or to the Medical Foundation of North Carolina, Inc, 123 W Franklin St Suite 510, Chapel Hill, NC 27516.
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