Margaret Louise "Peggy" (Porter) Gilbert

Margaret Louise “Peggy” (Porter) Gilbert passed away peacefully, February 20, 2026, after living a life filled with FAITH, FAMILY, and HORSES.

She was born at the family farm of her Porter grandparents, five miles south of Delta, CO, October 3, 1936. Her Christian upbringing led to a full life of devotion and service to her church, family, and the community. Peggy was baptized and attended the Presbyterian Church of Delta (PCD) most of her life. She and Harry Gilbert were married in a candlelight Christmas Eve service in 1955 and both their daughters, Beth and Susan, were later baptized at and attended PCD. Peggy served her local church as a Session and a choir member, She also attended and taught Sunday School. She represented Presbyterian Churches in Western Colorado as a delegate to Presbytery. Her membership was transferred to First Presbyterian Church of Grand Junction some 20 years ago.

Peggy appreciated her supportive family as a child and applied many of the lessons and principles she learned when raising her own daughters and later, teaching youth equitation. While Peggy’s mother, Lois McCracken Porter, had grown up and received some higher education in Pennsylvania, her father, Paul Mays Porter, was a Delta native. Peggy benefitted from knowing her grandfather, J.E. Porter and although her grandmother, Bessie Gretel Mays Porter, died just a few months before she was born, Peggy, her daughter, Beth, and granddaughter, Phaelen, have all enjoyed riding hours in Bessie’s unique saddle. Peggy enjoyed many summer trips - mostly by car - with her two sisters and mother, back to Pennsylvania to visit the McCracken grandparents. Peggy’s mother and the McCrackens endeavored to instill feminine homemaking skills and to cultivate her interest in pretty dresses, music, and culture. However, it was Peggy’s father who helped her hone many outdoor skills and introduced her to horses.

Peggy attended Columbine grade school and graduated from Delta High School. She received her Associate Degree in Secretarial Training from Colorado State University. She furthered her education about horses through clinics and certifications.

Peggy met her husband, Harry Gilbert, at Delta High School and upon graduating, they married and moved to Fort Collins to attend college. Daughter, Beth, was born the following year, 1956 and upon Harry’s graduation, they returned to Delta County where Harry joined his father-in-law in the plumbing business and their second daughter, Susan, was born in 1961.

From the sixties through the early nineties, Peggy devoted her time to raising her daughters, supporting her husband in his mechanical contracting business, and fostering and sharing her love of horses. It was probably due to her first “suitable” childhood horse – a Pinto named “Trinket” – that Peggy became one of the first women to promote and raise Paint horses. Peggy was a truly gifted horsewoman and used horses to impart the values of discipline, fairness, and honesty to youth as a Delta County 4-H horse leader for some 20 years and by creating and promoting youth programs for the American Paint Horse Association (A.P.H.A). Two of her most-treasured accolades were 1992 Horseman of the Year from the Colorado Horseman’s Council and Most Distinguished Service Award in 2000 from A.P.H.A. Probably most enjoyable to Peggy, though, were the hours spent trail riding (always on a Paint) in Western Colorado.

Peggy is survived by her devoted husband, Harry, of 70 years, two daughters (Beth Gilbert French -Don, Susan Margaret King -Eugene) three grandchildren (Joshua Gilbert King - Meghan, Phaelen Ann French -Mike Seery, Aaron Paul King - Tehya), five great-grandchildren (Madden, Emmagene, Miller, J, and Lainey), two sisters (Pat Pike and Ruth Porter) and one Paint horse (Pixel), currently shared by Beth and Phaelen.

Peggy’s family attributes her bountiful and productive life to her faith, her family, and to relationships made possible because of horses. A Celebration of Life will be held Friday, March 20, 2026, 2 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Grand Junction – 3940 27 ½ Road. Memorial contributions may be made in Peggy’s honor to HopeWest Hospice of Grand Junction.

“Happy Trails….”