Phyllis Beatrice Zolko

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our cherished Phyllis Beatrice Zolko on January 24, 2025. Born on July 17, 1964, in Norristown, PA, Phyllis was 60 years old when she passed unexpectedly, leaving behind a legacy of warmth and kindness.

After a career in various telephone marketing and employee recruitment positions, Phyllis spent the last years of her life in a nursing home, the result of a brain injury leaving her partially paralyzed, aphasic and bedridden. We had hopes that Phyllis would be able to overcome her difficulties. We were encouraged by the fact we could visit and FaceTime and communicate with her, and that she might recover, but that was not to be. Phyllis will be missed by all who knew and loved her.

She is deeply mourned by family members: daughter Valerie Jean Toth-Heard, mother, Bonnie Gersbach Gordon, step-father, Daniel Arnold Gordon, grandson, Caleb Kenneth Heard, brothers, Richard Arthur Zolko and Christopher Kieran Zolko, sisters, Dean June Galatas and Angela Lundy, nephews, Xavier Michael Wood, Wade Jeffrey Zolko, Matthew Joseph Heilman, Archer Daniel and Seamus Christopher Fahey, grand-niece, Arabella Nichole Wood, grand-nephews, Logan Wood and Nathaniel River Wood. Phyllis was pre-deceased by brother, Michael Brandon Fahey.

Phyllis lived her life by being a kind and loving person, a generous soul willing to share her last few dollars with a friend in need. An accomplished tap-dancer and stage-manager in her mother’s several studios, she was a woman of wide-spread interests with a passion for reading, particularly true crime mystery. She was adamant about her TV time and had scheduled programs that she watched religiously every weeknight. She lived for summertime, which was dedicated to swimming at which she excelled, and playing co-ed volleyball at which she also excelled. She loved being with people and endeared herself to them with her sense of humor, her sharp wit, her beautiful blonde hair and striking blue eyes, but her truest love, besides family, was the ocean. She was content, most thoughtful and relaxed sitting by the sea, reading, listening to music or just daydreaming.

Music was an integral part of her life. Her taste was eclectic, but her top pick was classic rock. She knew the tunes and all the words and loved dancing to her favorites.

A well-known fact about Phyllis was her love for orange cats, the fluffier the better. She had many over the years, but like errant husbands they didn’t wait around for very long. She pined away for each one of them only to eventually find one on a neighbor’s porch and another in a neighbor’s window nicely settled in for the duration.

Now you know the story of our beloved. Family and friends gathered to celebrate Phyllis’ life on February 23, 2025, at the Lodge on the Chattahoochee a few feet away from the pool Phyllis loved to adorn for many happy summers.