Pleasant Hill, CA

Margaret “Peggy” Burton passed away at home, surrounded by her family, on February 17, 2023. She was surrounded by love until the very end of her heroic, nearly seven-year battle with breast cancer.

Born June 24, 1952 in San Francisco to Vincent and Mary “Vi” Murphy, she grew up in Colma with her brother John Murphy (Luisa), and attended Holy Angels School (Colma) and Mercy High School (San Francisco). She received her BSN from USF, where she was a Sigma Theta Tau, and embarked on a 35+ year career in nursing, which included positions at Stanford, Mt. Diablo ( John Muir), and Kaiser. She ultimately received her MSN while working full-time and raising her three children with her loving husband, Steve Burton, to whom she was married for 46 years.

Peggy and Steve met in San Francisco in 1968, married at Holy Angels Colma in 1976, and moved to the East Bay, where they raised their three children Julie Baker (Chris), Katie Landini ( Joe), and Brian Burton (Noelle) in Martinez and Pleasant Hill. With a demanding full-time job and an even more demanding household full of children and various pets (including her beloved golden retrievers), she still made time for her many passions, which included gardening, walking, her regular “Bunco Babes” group, and her large network of extended family and friends. But despite all this, her true passion was her grandchildren, to whom she was entirely devoted: Dominic, James, Lily, Abby, and Leo.

Friends and family are invited to attend a vigil at Christ the King Church (195 Brandon Road, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523) on Tuesday, February 28th at 6pm, and a funeral mass at Christ the King Church on Wednesday, March 1st at 10:30am. A Celebration of Life reception will follow the mass and burial, at 1pm at Zio Fraedo’s (611 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill CA 94523).

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to one of Peggy’s favorite organizations: St. Vincent de Paul, AS- PCA, the American Cancer Society, or Hospice of the East Bay.