Deborah Mayhew Peckham (Debbi) died on June 23. She was 69.

Debbi was born in Westerly, R.I., on August 5, 1949, the daughter of Ernestine Mayhew Peckham and Arthur Ellsworth Peckham Jr. of Westerly and Chilmark.

A short time before her death, Debbi wrote about her life for her family and friends, generating the kernel of this obituary.

She reflected lovingly on the many meaningful relationships that sustained her throughout her life, including her siblings and her nieces, their spouses and children, and her beloved pets, Dagger and Beau. She lifted up with gratitude the many friends and neighbors who, through laughter and tears, taught her about loyalty and unconditional love, as well as the devoted caregivers who brought skill, caring and kindness to their work with her.

Debbi spent her career in beautiful places, including West Point at the Defense Intelligence Agency, and 20 years as a manager and strategic planner with the Coast Guard’s Research and Development center in New London, Conn. She took pride in holding her own as a woman in male-dominated spaces.

Her love of travel took her to five of the seven continents. Her last big trip, a solo safari to Tanzania, was the fulfillment of a childhood dream. Other meaningful travel memories involved time with her beloved nieces, including a trip to Alaska with niece Alee, shopping at Istanbul’s grand bazaar with niece Sam, and experiencing Carnivale in Venice with niece Katherine. She treasured time with niece Carrie, who, in her words, journeyed with her through one of her longest, darkest nights.

Debbi valued books as friends and was seldom without pen and paper or pencil and drawing pad.

She is particularly proud of her efforts to support the lives and experiences of women, believing as she did that resources, education and encouragement directed at women have the most profound effect on the lives of their children, their communities and, ultimately, the world.

She is survived by her brother, Thomas Peckham of Westerly, R.I., and sister, Prudence Marsh of Ashfield, Mass., as well as beloved nieces, in laws and friends. She was predeceased by her sister, Virginia Welch.