Phyllis was born a “coal miner’s daughter” in the parlor of the family home in Larksville, Pennsylvania on September 6, 1929. She was the fifth child of Thomas Benjamin Kerschner and Loretta Florence (Cadwalader) Kerschner. Born a month before the stock market crash of October 1929, she was a child of the Great Depression, and recalled hard times of lima-bean meals and flour-sack dresses. She was a good student, made the Kappa Alpha Delta literary society, and graduated from Larksville High School in 1947.
Phyllis’s first job was making metal addressograph plates for Pomeroy’s Department store in nearby Wilkes-Barre where she was later promoted to the store’s unit control office. In 1951, Phyllis and a friend headed to Washington, D.C. to work as clerk typists with the U.S. Navy at the Pentagon. They roomed in a D.C. boarding house where they shared a single bathroom with 9 other women. In the summer of 1952, a young army veteran from Missouri, named Allen S. Goff, roomed for a short time at the same boarding house. Phyllis and Al got to know each other during “carpooling” and weekend dates, which led to their wedding on May 23, 1953. They honeymooned at Echo Lake in the Poconos Mountains.
Phyllis ended her civilian Navy career prior to the birth of their son, Allen. The new family moved from Arlington Virginia, to suburban Maryland where a few years later, Phyllis gave birth to second son, Bruce and daughter, Susan. After the boys left home, the family moved to Fairfax, Virginia; and when Al retired, the two settled in the picturesque Shenandoah Valley, first in Waynesboro and finally in Stuarts Draft.
Phyllis was a long-time homemaker, gardener, crafter, quilter, and square dancer. She loved to play games, especially Hollywood Dominos. She was a life-long Methodist and found comfort in her faith. In their retirement, she and Al traveled throughout the continental U.S. visiting family and friends, as well as to Hawaii, England, Ireland and Wales.
Phyllis is preceded in death by her parents; brothers, Clement (“Clem”) and Jesse (“Jess”); sisters, Gladys (“Spark”), Beatrice (“Bea”), and Nancy; and her son, Allen P. Goff.
Phyllis is survived by her loving husband, Allen; her daughter, Susan (Bill) McIntyre; son, Bruce (Eileen) Goff; daughter-in-law, Sigrid Goff; adult grandchildren, Jeremy and John Goff, and Thomas and Justin McIntyre; nieces, Beatrice “Jane” Powell (Marty) Quinn and Pamela Hufford Kennedy; and nephew, Billy (Maryann) Hufford.
A service to celebrate Phyllis’s long life will be conducted 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at the Waynesboro Chapel of Reynolds Hamrick Funeral Homes with Pastor Linda Kusse-Wolfe officiating.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Main Street United Methodist Church, 601 W. Main St, Waynesboro, VA 22980 or to the American Cancer Society, American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 22478, Oklahoma City, OK 73123.
The family of Phyllis wishes to extend our sincere thanks to the Stuarts Draft Retirement Community and Christian Homes, the Hospice of the Shenandoah, and the Main Street United Methodist Church, for the care and comfort given in her final days.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Waynesboro Chapel of Reynolds Hamrick Funeral Homes.
Relatives and friends may share condolences and memories online with the family by visiting www.reynoldshamrickfuneralhomes.com.
