Jill was born on Friday, July 13, 1956 in Atlanta, GA to Nell Baldwin Chancey and the late Jack Wilson Chancey. She was an artist from a young age, and her joy in the Lord was her strength and salvation. She believed her talent was His gift to her, one that she joyfully wanted to share with others. Attending Queens College and then earning a BFA in Art Education from the University of Georgia was only the beginning of what became a noted career in watercolor and oil painting, teaching, and designing. Her hand-painted world of color and light was most recently expressed through her business, Knack and Jill, and she even completed her Interior Design degree from NYIAD after her diagnosis. She inspired many young artists as both a teacher and mentor.
For several decades, Jill exhibited her paintings across the country and held many art related positions, becoming a leader in the arts in her community and Southeast region. She served on the Uptown Columbus Board, was a founding member of the Joseph House Art Gallery, served as a Columbus Ledger-Enquirer Page One Award judge, Area Director for the Georgia Watercolor Society, President of the Columbus Museum Guild, and was a founding member and on the regional board of advisors for the Bo Bartlett Center. She was deeply involved as an elder at First Presbyterian Church and a founding covenant partner of Grace Presbyterian Church, where she served on the Site Planning and Development Committee for their new church building.
Other than her faith, Jill’s family was her greatest joy. She is survived by her husband, Frank Anderson Philips, Sr.; her daughter, Chancey Philips Thompson (Tread); and her son, Frank Anderson Philips, Jr. She is also survived by her beloved grandsons, Treadwell Blakesley Thompson, Jr. and Frank Philips Thompson, her mother, Nell Baldwin Chancey, and her sisters, Cheryl Chancey Graham (John) and Susan Chancey Holland (Steve), and a host of brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews.
The family will receive visitors on Wednesday, March 7, 2018 from 5:00-7:00 pm at Striffler-Hamby. A celebration Jill’s life will be held in the Garden at the Rivermill on Thursday, March 8, 2018 at 11:00 am. In lieu of flowers, her family requests donations be made to the Building Fund at Grace Presbyterian Church, PO Box 4747 Columbus, GA 31914, the Columbus Museum, 1251 Wynnton Rd, Columbus, GA 31906 or the John B. Amos Cancer Center, 1831 5th Ave. Columbus, GA 31904.
