Phillip Stephen Painter

Phillip Stephen Painter passed away on January 25, 2019 in Boring, Oregon. He was born on September 17, 1937 in Morrill, Kansas to Ernest John and Alpha May (Cunningham) Painter. He attended Morrill Kansas grade school and high school. He then attended Chaffey College in Ontario, California.

From 1954 to 1958, Phillip served in the United States Navy. While serving in the Navy, he married his wife Aris on December 16, 1956 in Pomona, California. After his discharge from the Navy, he was the shift leadsman in a plating company. Phillip and Aris moved to Oregon in 1965, and he worked at Hyster Co. until he joined the Coastal Machinery Company for the remainder of his career.

Phil enjoyed volunteering with 4-H, where he taught leather craft and helped with camp-outs for Camp Fire Girls. He was on the city council of Fairview and the coordinator of the Park Cleone project when the park was originally built. He spent many years making wine and sharing it with friends. He volunteered at Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center by mowing the fields surrounding the buildings, and drove the parking lot golf car to transport visitors. He was also a member of the Gateway Elks.

Phil had many hobbies and interests. He and his wife were ballroom dancers and enjoyed many years of classes and practice. He loved yearly hunt camp in southern Oregon, fishing, rafting and hiking. Skiing was a big part of his life, as was motorcycling on his Aspencade with friends or on solo trips. He and his wife traveled around the US, to Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, Europe and cruising thru the Panama Canal were highlights. In later years, he took up wood turning and made beautiful bowls and a lot of wood chips and sawdust. He had a productive garden and competed in a neighborhood sunflower contest. Two riding mowers helped him keep up with the yard work. He will also be remembered for the beautiful yard he kept, and the wonderful wooden bowls that he made.

Phil will always be remembered for being a kind man, his contagious laughter, and for the great love he had for his family and friends. He adored his daughters and grandchildren and loved spending time with them.

Phil is survived by his wife, Aris Painter of Boring; his daughters, Karen Willoughby of Sherwood, Cathy Rice (Kenneth) of Wilsonville and Connie Kingrey (Patrick) of Woodland, Washington; and two grandchildren, Phillip Rice of Vancouver, Washington and Stacey Rice of Colorado Springs, Colorado.

A Celebration of Phil’s Life will be held on Tuesday, February 5, 2019 at 2:00 pm at Bateman Carroll Funeral Home in Gresham, Oregon. Memorial Contributions can be made to the Oregon Humane Society.