Altha Elizabeth "Bess" Peters, age 92, a resident of Midlothian , Virginia since 2007, died Monday, March 19, 2012. She was born on November 2, 1919 in Garland County to the late Frederick and Effie Orr Byrum. Living most of her life in Central Arkansas, she grew up in Hot Springs , attended high school in Little Rock , and graduated from Ouachita Baptist University . In June of 1941, she married Dr. C. F. "Pete" Peters. They moved to Malvern in 1946 to establish a medical practice and raise a family. Bess was a wonderful and generous wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend. She was a talented singer, artist and musician; a gracious hostess; a creative cook, gardener and decorator; a world traveler. For 60 years, she was a member of the First Baptist Church in Malvern, and its choir, where she helped found the Silver Belles Chorus that performed for church and non-profit groups throughout the area. After her move to Virginia , she studied watercolor painting, exhibited in art shows, and donated her work for YMCA fundraisers. Bess faced all of l ife 's joys and challenges with an indomitable spirit. She rarely met a stranger, and treated everyone with dignity and respect. She inspired all who knew her by her love of life, her enthusiasm, and her never-give-up attitude. Bess and Pete's son, Steve Peters, was killed in Vietnam in 1967.

Bess is survived by her two daughters and their families: Pat and her husband, Bill Walters, and their son, Allan Walters and his wife Marcia Eugenio, and their two daughters, Gracie and Sabrina and her daughter, Tracy Shea and her husband, Danny, and their two daughters, Riley and Madeline; Jan and her husband, Don Wood, their daughter Erin Wood and their daughter, Lauren Wood and her fianc, Brett Mortensen.

A visitation will be held on Friday evening, March 23, 2012 from six until eight o'clock at J. A. Funk Funeral Home.

Private graveside services will be at Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Hot Springs followed by a public memorial service beginning at one o'clock Saturday afternoon in the sanctuary of First Baptist Church , with Brother Tyler Thompson officiating.

The family will receive friends in the church's Family Life Center following the memorial service.

Bess showed us all how to live a rich and full life. We love her and will miss her. In lieu of flowers, memorials are requested to First Baptist Church or Arkansas Children's Hospital.

Online condolences may be sent via jafunkfuneralhome.com.