PLAINFIELD, NH — Brenda Gayle Phillips departed from the arms of her loving family in the living room of her home on River Road in Plainfield, New Hampshire in the late afternoon sun of December 3rd, 2018. She succumbed to the same nameless, cruel, and relentless neurodegenerative disease that had claimed the lives of her South Carolinian Mother, Grandmother, and Great-grandmother.
Brenda was born on November 27th, 1956 in Tampa, Florida to George Wesley Phillips and Anne Dupre Dixon. She grew up wandering the jungles and beaches of Siesta Key, Florida where her mother “Dixie” had a small home. As a teenager Brenda took up competitive waterskiing with a local group, and her natural athletic gifts and untiring determination allowed her to claim the 1977 state championship in women’s trick skiing. Just as determined academically, and helped by some caring teachers, Brenda left Florida for Mount Holyoke College, where she reveled in the community of intellectual exploration and supportive sisterhood. At Mount Holyoke Brenda completed three majors, and was introduced to color theory and oil painting, which she pursued till the end of her life. She also met, on a weekend visit to Dartmouth, her future husband, Ted Moynihan.
After college, she and Ted lived and worked in Berkeley, California, New York City, and then in 1982 settled in the Upper Valley of New Hampshire. There, Brenda took an administrative job at R&D engineering firm Creare Inc, doing technical writing and project administration. Brenda left Creare in 1991 to care for her children and to focus on her painting, while also serving on the board of the AVA Gallery. She was honored by Creare, which appreciated an art major always focused on getting the job done and fearlessly un-intimidated by a roomful of opinionated PhD engineers. She became the first woman employee ever selected for their Rogue’s Gallery of Distinction. In 1984, Brenda and Ted bought an 1860 farmhouse in Plainfield, where they were married in 1985, and have lived and raised their family since.
While on the surface Brenda’s life could appear a simple fairy tale, below the surface Brenda carried dark wounds from early childhood abuse. Brenda’s lifelong journey to understand that abuse was the deep process that both burdened and motivated her through much of her life. She was ultimately able to reveal, understand, and forgive the abuse. That final act of forgiveness was transformative and liberating, inspiring her joyous mothering, her adventurous spirituality, her generosity, and her exuberant painting.
Brenda leaves behind her husband, Ted Moynihan, of Plainfield, NH, and their children; Alison of Keene, NH, Liam of Boston, MA, and Galen of Hanover, NH. Brenda’s wonderful siblings are scattered around the country. Sister, Alison Carter lives in the house where they grew up in Sarasota, FL, sister, Linda Phillips lives in Wesley Chapel, Fl, sister, Diane Hansen lives in Land of Lakes, FL, brother, Jim Phillips lives in Boulder Creek, CA, and brother, Doug Phillips lives in Hanalei, HI.
Brenda was continually seeking spiritually, and when she came face to face with her disease 20 years ago, she wasted no time on self-pity. Instead, she made the conscious decision to put all of her energy into making the world a better place. She made sure her own children knew they were well loved, she reached out to homeless children, she built 50 disease free homes in a remote village in Bolivia, she cared for friends and neighbors in her community and battered women needing shelter, and she made art to uplift the spirit. She would be honored if any who knew her were inspired to do the same.
Please make any contributions in her memory to The Turning Point Network in Claremont, NH, to Mount Holyoke College, or to a local charity in your own community.
Calling Hours will be at Ricker Funeral Home in Lebanon on Friday, December 14th from 5-7:00 P.M. A memorial service will be held at the Meriden Congregational Church on Saturday, December 15th at 12:00 P.M.
To leave a message of condolence for Brenda’s family please visit rickerfuneralhome.com.