Phyllis Jean Price

Phyllis Jean (Franklin) Price AKA "The Wolf Lady", 83, crossed the rainbow bridge Saturday, August 1st. Phyllis was born on October 17th, 1936 to the late Russell and Ivanelle Franklin in Ashtabula, Ohio.

She attended Linden-McKinley High School in Columbus, Ohio and graduated in 1954. Phyllis went to Ohio State University to pursue her dream in Journalism.

Life had other plans, as she got married and moved to San Francisco, California with her former husband. The family moved to Indiana in 1973.

Phyllis was a hard worker, always staying busy and keeping active. She is most known for her love of wolves. She spent 15+ years caring for captive wolves. She taught elementary school classes about wolves and how they fit into our world. Phyllis also spent time interacting with the wolves at Wolf Park in Battle Ground, Indiana. She even helped raise two wolf pups in Ely, Minnesota as a “nanny”.

Animals were her life. Her day to day activities were surrounded with animals. She took part in dog sledding, a fun sport to interact with the different breeds of dogs. Phyllis visited Yellowstone Park, solely to learn about the wildlife there. She was always educating herself on how animals lived in the wild. Though she spent a lot of time with the animals who live in the woods, Phyllis also worked in the Ocean’s building at the Indianapolis Zoo.

Among her busy life of raising a family, she had an early retirement and never let a day go to waste. Phyllis was a member and volunteer of many organizations; National Women in Construction (1983-2009), Community Alliance of the Far Eastside, FACE – low cost spay/neuter clinic adoption events, Presidential Task Force (1988), World Police and Fire Games (2001), International Wolf Center, Pan Am Games, the 500 Fest, and 37 years at Conner Prairie. These were just highlights of Phyllis’s joyful life. When she wasn’t actively participating in events, she was donating to numerous animal charities.

Phyllis is survived by her two children; Tracey (Mark) Shriver of Zionsville, IN and Scott (Janet) of Westfield, IN; a sister, Kay Franklin Perkins of Ft. Wayne, IN; grandchildren, David (Bobbie) Leisure of Noblesville, IN, Justin (Savannah) Price of Bloomington, IN, Kyle (Aubrey) Price of Westfield, IN, and Dean Shriver of Indianapolis, IN.

Phyllis is also survived by three great grandchildren; Kayla and Kimber Leisure of Noblesville,IN, and Zoe Price of Westfield, IN.

She is preceded in death by both of her parents.

A memorial gathering for Phyllis will be held Saturday, August 15, 2020 from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM at Leppert Mortuaries – Nora, 740 East 86th St, Indianapolis, Indiana 46240, followed by a celebration of life at 4:00 PM. A livestream of the service can be viewed on our Leppert Mortuary Facebook page. Per the current state regulations, all guests are required to wear a face mask when entering the building. To allow for proper social distancing, the facility has a maximum of 50 attendees at a time. Extra masks will be available from the family, as will hand sanitizer.

A private burial will take place at another time.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Phyllis' memory may be made to Wolf Park, 4004 E 800 N, Battle Ground, Indiana 47920 US, https://shop.wolfpark.org/collections/donate-to-wolf-park/products/donate-to-wolf-park.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.leppertmortuarynora.com for the Price family.