Heritage Court 2023
Lady Peggy Dean
Peggy Dean of Ketchum moved here to ski on Bald Mountain. One of the very few people born within Yosemite National Park, Peggy’s father was the winter sports director and Peggy started downhill skiing when she was three or four years old. Winter sport was in her blood.
Peggy skied throughout her youth. She married an avid skier, Howard Dean, and they had two children, a boy and a girl who, of course, skied. After a few weeklong ski vacations to Sun Valley, they decided to move here in 1978. They bought a gas station south of Ketchum and turned it into a tire and auto repair business, Dean Tire. They bought a house in Hulen Meadows and worked to establish the new business, skiing the weekends.
Peggy with her degree in education, worked as a substitute teacher (and later, in special education), did the bookkeeping for their business and was active with the Ski Education Foundation while her kids were ski racing. She joined the Sun Valley Ski Club right after moving here and is still an active member.
Peggy’s volunteerism did not focus only on skiing. Early on, she became a member of the Papoose Club and has also volunteered with the Community Library, the Sun Valley Museum for the Arts, and the Environmental Resource Center, to name a few. She served on the board of the Ketchum/Sun Valley Historical Society Board and on the Community Library Board.
Howard passed away in 1994. Peggy’s son lives in the Valley and her daughter is in Washington; there are several grandchildren to enjoy. Peggy still downhill skis (“of course”, she says) but mixes it up with Nordic skate skiing. She hikes in the summer, has biked several sections of the Continental Divide trail and “loves being in the mountains”.
One more tie between Peggy and Sun Valley--her father. He was an Olympian who had competed in ski jumping and Nordic skiing in the 1928 Olympics. But Peggy didn’t know until she was in college that Averell Harriman had hired him in 1936 to ski various hills around Ketchum and scout the specific location for the Sun Valley ski area. His name: Charley Proctor. The mountain with the first chairlift in the world was named after him.
Lady Carol Eittreim
Carol Farrow Eittreim of Bellevue describes herself as all about family. She first came to the Wood River Valley from Pendleton, OR in 1971 with her four children, ages 6 to 12, at the urging of her cousin. She applied and got a secretarial position with the VP of Finance for Sun Valley Company. Their first home was a rental in Hailey and then with the construction of China Gardens she was able to buy their own home with an affordable payment.
In 1976 she married Bill Eittreim whom she had met at Sun Valley Company. Bill had one child, 6 years old, so together they were a family of seven. Carol left Sun Valley Company in 1977 to work for Bitterroot Realty/Property Management. Bill and Carol subsequently bought the property management division of Bitterroot and operated it until 1995. She says one wears many hats in the property management business. The year 1978 took them to Bellevue where they remodeled a house on Broadford Road, making it their home for 42 years. Carol has fond memories of dozens of family and friend gatherings at their beautiful home.
In 1999 a new employment venture for Bill took them to Boise where they bought and renovated a 100-year-old home close to the downtown area. They enjoyed their time in Boise but when Bill joined Carol in retirement, they had to decide if they would stay in Boise or move to where the family was. The choice was easy; move home to Bellevue.
Over the years Carol and Bill have been enthusiastic supporters/fans of all the sports the kids and seven grandkids and eight great-grandkids have been involved in from a very early age to adults in co-ed ball! Carol herself is physically active in walking, hiking, yoga, biking. She says she also has ridden a good many miles on the back of a Honda Goldwing motorcycle with Bill and cousins touring the West, Mexico and one trip to Savannah, GA
Carol is an active member of St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Hailey.
Today, Carol is happy to be surrounded by a myriad of activities, friends and family in Bill and her “forever” lovely home built in 2020 on their daughter and son-in-law’s property. Carol’s motto: Strong women raise strong women raise strong women.
Lady Geegee Lowe
Geegee Lowe of Hailey is here and there, often within the same day. You’ll see her working at the Hailey Welcome Center then in the office at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church. A couple hours later she is managing volunteers at the Hailey Public Library book sale or working at the Episcopal Thrift Store then off to a 4th of July or Kiwanis Club meeting. She says of herself, “I show up”, and indeed she does.
Born in the east, at 24, Geegee looked around her office and said, “I don’t want to be here for my whole career”. On a journey of adventure, she arrived in the Wood River Valley in 1976. She says she didn’t come for the skiing (although she does ski). She stopped to visit and stayed because she fell in love with the valley and variety of things to do here. Variety is the quintessential element of Geegee’s life.
In 1978, Geegee met Robert Lowe and was happily married 33 years until his passing in 2014. They were blessed with three amazing children and several grandchildren to spoil.
Geegee’s work resume is about as varied as it could be. Her first job in the valley was chinking log cabins. Like many, she worked for Sun Valley Company, reservations in the winter and grounds crew in the summer. She worked for the “Ketchum Sun Valley Chamber Resort Association” until starting a family became #1. While the kids were young, she ran a daycare. Then on to an assortment of jobs – The Mountain Express, the Carousel Toy Store, BCRD, Hailey Public Library, and Trailing of the Sheep.
Geegee has organized the Hailey Cemetery Memorial Day ceremony for many years, an event close to her heart. She is also active with the Friends of the Hailey Public Library, promoting the love of reading. For the Trailing of the Sheep Festival, she coordinates volunteers for the numerous activities of the event. Geegee is also involved with the 4th of July Parade, one of her favorite events, and Kiwanis – which is all about kids.
Geegee loves being a part of giving back. Her philosophy is “show up” and “help where you can”. She is grateful to call home “an amazing and generous community of non-profits that create a vibrant calendar of opportunities for making a positive difference in the lives of others.”
Lady Becky Payne
Becky Payne of Carey has deep roots in the Wood River Valley; more specifically in the Carey area. One of Becky’s grandfathers, Jim Telfer, immigrated from Scotland around 1893 and by 1910 he owned land in Fish Creek. Her other grandfather, Worthington Eldredge, came north from Utah as an infant in 1892. Becky’s mom grew up on the family sheep and cattle ranch in Fish Creek. Becky went to school in Carey and after graduating from Carey High School, went to Boise for an accounting degree. Then she came home.
Becky’s husband, Dick Payne, also went to Carey High School. They were good friends, and after Becky got back from Boise, they became sweethearts and married in 1974. Dick hauled hay for awhile but then took over the family ranch/farm on Silver Creek, the Payne Ranch. They ran cattle for a while but then shifted their operation to focus on hay (alfalfa). They still have the property in Fish Creek. But they live on Silver Creek with their son now running the farm. Becky put her accounting degree to good use working for Adamson’s Grocery (for 42 years) and keeping the books for the Ranch.
Becky and Dick have four children and six grandchildren. All live close enough to gather at the Ranch for good times. While raising the kids, Becky was very involved with 4-H. As she says, the discipline and commitment to raising a lamb is good for a youngster. Becky says her mother instilled a work ethic in her and her sister; she has instilled that in her family.
Becky also was on the Blaine County Fair Board for many years. The annual fair, in Carey, is a place to showcase a wide array of skills taken on by 4-H kids, from raising livestock to canning string beans to needlepoint. Becky is involved at the Carey Senior Center with lunches and the exercise class. Becky says she has a good life and lives in a good community. She has demonstrated her commitment to her community and her heritage through her lifelong involvement in Carey.