Judy Lee Phillips

Judy was born on July 18, 1944 in Horton, Kansas, the daughter of Ernest and Ethel (Carter) Meerpohl, and spent her childhood in northeastern Kansas. She graduated from Concordia High School in 1962 before attending Kansas State University, where she pledged Kappa Alpha Theta. After graduating from K State in 1966, she became a flight attendant for Pan Am and was based in San Francisco, California. She met her husband, David Harrison Phillips, while living in the same apartment building there, and they married on September 2, 1967. They raised their family in Atherton, California, where Judy spent many years as a tireless and dedicated volunteer at her daughters’ schools. She eventually returned to the workplace as a librarian, and later a high school treasurer, for the Sequoia Union High School District. David passed away in 2006 after 38 years of marriage.

Judy relocated in 2008 to the Reynolds Plantation community in Greensboro, Georgia, where she enjoyed golfing and hosting family and friends at her lake home. She spent her summers in Pearl, Colorado, living in a remote cabin that has belonged to her family for more than fifty years. Judy was an avid reader who enjoyed being a member of book clubs both in California and Georgia. She also loved to travel, recently having journeyed with family to the Galapagos Islands and the Amazon rainforest. Judy was a thoughtful and genuine person who extended her kindness to everyone she met, and she leaves behind many close friends and relatives who will miss her dearly. Her greatest joy in life, however, was her role as “Grandma Judy.”

Judy is survived by her two daughters, Elizabeth Phillips Kelley (Sean) of Oak Park, Illinois, and Ashley Phillips Frieden (Chris) of Atlanta, Georgia, and five grandchildren: Griffin, Maggie and Quinn Kelley; and Carter and Colby Frieden. She was preceded in death by her husband, David, and her parents, Ernie and Ethel Meerpohl.

A private Celebration of Life gathering will be held for close friends and family. Memorial contributions may be directed to the Melanoma Research Foundation or the Kansas State University Foundation.