Nellie Margret Phillips

She was born on April 18, 1944 to Guadalupe and Catalina (Salazar) Mireles in Vacaville, California. Nellie was raised in Gerber, California in a close, loving family of 6 brothers and 2 sisters. Shortly after graduating Red Bluff High School, she met and married Ronald Phillips on July 19, 1964. On July 19, 2026, they celebrated 62 wonderful years of marriage! After they married, they resided in Red Bluff, California, and in 1966, they welcomed their first daughter, Bonnie (Phillips) Palacio. Three years later, in 1969, they welcomed their second daughter, Carrie (Phillips) Clark. In 1972, Ron became a CHP officer and moved the family to Blythe, California where Nellie made a comfortable home life for her family. The next move was to Brawley, California, in 1980, where they lived for 6 years before making their way to Redding, California.

In her earlier years, Nellie spent time cheerfully volunteering in her church, serving the Lord, and making many good friends along the way. Throughout her lifetime, Nellie taught children from preschool to high school. Nellie earned her migrant education certificate and taught English and basic academic skills to many students. As the years passed, former local students would often approach and greet her with affection when they would see her around town. They never forgot how much she loved and cared for them. In more recent years, she worked alongside her husband (Ron) at various classic car club events, car shows, and participated in countless classic car cruises.

Nellie was blessed with a long life, filled with love and joy! She was thoughtful and selfless, always putting others above herself. She was a fantastic cook, and comforted many with her homemade Mexican food. If there was a school fundraiser, she was always ready to help. She enjoyed spending time with her family, especially her four grandchildren. Nellie was loved, and will be greatly missed.

She is survived by her immediate family: husband (Ron), 2 daughters, Bonnie (Mark) and Carrie (Matt), 4 grandchildren (Jeremy Palacio, Ambria Palacio Delgado, Andrew Clark, and Emma Clark Barrera). She is also survived by her brothers and sisters: James Mireles (of Lincoln, CA), John Mireles (of Gerber, CA), Juanita Gutierrez (of Roseville, CA), and Rose Corey (of Roseville, CA).