Sonia Charlotte (Botello) Peters passed away March 6 at the Meadow View Memory Care facility in Emmett, Idaho, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Sonia was born Aug. 22 1945, in Calcutta, India, to John and Gertrude (Thomas) Botello. She joined an older brother, Rhett. As she grew up, she went to school where Mother Teresa was an instructor. While there, she learned secretarial and office skills, language, diction, and ethics. These would take Sonia a long way.

In 1973, while working in India, Sonia met Morris Cukiewar, whom she later married and came to New York City with. Using the skills acquired in Mother Teresa’s school, she started as a temporary office worker. In April 1974, she gave birth to a daughter, Dawn. She was very proud of her daughter all of her life. She returned to the office and began to rise in her field. She eventually rose to the position of executive secretary and floor manager at Behr-Stearns brokerage firm on Wall Street.

In 1983, she and Morris divorced, and even though they were divorced, his family held Sonia in high esteem and continued to love and support her. Throughout, she continued with her career. In 1986, Sonia met Gary Peters, and they were married in 1988. In 1994, Gary relocated to Sacramento, Calif., in search of employment. Sonia retired from Behr-Stearns and joined him in California in 1995. In California, Sonia went to work for the USAF at McClellan Air Force Base. Gary, unfortunately, began to show signs of cancer, and Sonia had to eventually quit work and take care of him. In April 2003, he passed away from lung cancer.

Sonia relocated back to New York City where she lived with her daughter in Queens. She would make daily trips to St. Patrick’s Cathedral to pray at the effigy of St. Jude and later at Mother Teresa’s effigy. While in New York City, she traveled extensively with trips to California, Oregon, and other points of interest. In 2006, she went on a trip to Jalisco, Mexico. While there, she met Patty Leahy. Together, they had many adventures.

In 2011, she came to the Harney County area to visit with Patty. Her first question was, “Where’s Macy’s?” She met Jim Bosch, and the two became inseparable. Sonia loved Harney County and its people. She would say, “It’s so clean. The people are so friendly.”

She became a close friend to Elmer Graves. She enjoyed accompanying Elmer to his ranch to feed and tend to his cattle. She liked to drive and search for wildlife and birds. She enjoyed the local deer.

Sonia and her partner traveled often, including yearly trips to New York. They traveled around Oregon, Washington, and occasionally California. In 2013, Sonia was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. This, of course, curtailed the travel. In 2017, she was able to make two more trips: one to Santa Barbara, Calif. for her daughter’s wedding, and one last trip to New York City. In February 2018, she entered The Aspens residential facility where she stayed until February 2019 when she was moved to Idaho.

Sonia is survived by her daughter, Dawn, and husband, Robin, of New York City; brother, Clifton, and family of Long Island, N.Y.; sisters, Sabrina, and family of Queens, Linda (Annie), of London, Bernadette and Juanita (Pinky), both of India; many members of her ex-husband’s family; childhood and longtime friend, Sylvia Mendolo; and life-partner, Jim Bosch.

She was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Rhett; and sister, Loraine.

For those inclined, a donation may be made in Sonia’s name to the charity of your choice. Her favorites were the Shriners and St. Jude’s (she loved children). A local memorial will be held May 15. Information about the time and place will be announced at a later date.