Filippo. Phyllis A, After a full 96 years on this earth, Phyllis J. Filippo passed away peacefully on August 23rd surrounded by family at her Huntington Beach residence. Mentally sharp until the end, with a perpetually uplifting sense of humor, Phyllis was a woman of great beauty, in body and spirit, proud of and generous to her family and many friends. She was blessed her entire life with close companions and an unending source of energy that she shared with all around her. Phyllis was born just before the start of the Great Depression in the Chicagoland area. She was the granddaughter of Inga, a Norwegian immigrant woman, who as a teen boarded a ship to this country in search of a better life. Phyllis’s mother Alice worked at Inga’s modest employment agency, with Phyllis helping at times. Her young brother Howard helped with chores. Some summer days, the children would explore the open areas and swing from the trees on vines in the ravine. They spent hours and hours on the shores and in the cold waters of Lake Michigan, often with their cousins and friends. Years later when Phyllis was a teenager, Alice and the two children moved to Texas. After graduation, Phyllis found work as an office nurse on an Air Force base. There she met and married Ray Custer, a WWII and Korean War Air Force pilot. After frequent moves to many cities which Phyllis was tired of, they agreed to part on good terms; and Ray remained a friend of Howard’s and the extended family for years after the divorce. Eventually, Phyllis moved to Long Beach, California, where her brother and his family lived. She worked for the California State University system until her retirement. Here she met her husband Don Fletcher, who passed away in 1999, after 25 happy years together, During their long and happy marriage, they spent time in central California rehabilitating a couple of homes, themselves. Even more fulfilling was their dedication to helping friends and family while they lived there. After caring for her ailing mother in Las Vegas for several years, Phyllis found happiness again with her husband Ralph Filippo, Sr. They enjoyed their family and friends, and also traveling to exotic lands, including China, which she enjoyed very much. Sadly, Ralph passed away in 2019. To Phyllis, life was full and interesting! She was a loving, sweet, fun – and funny – person who enjoyed a glass of wine with a meal or a shot of Bailey’s in her morning coffee. Phyllis had a terrific sense of humor, and her warm laugh was cheery. Fabric crafts and clog-dancing had been hobbies in her middle years. She was a wife, step-grandmother, and also an aunt to many of us; and she is already greatly missed. We hold her in our hearts as an example of how we should always try to be: friendly, deeply caring, fun-loving, and gentle. Preceding Phyllis in death was her brother Howard; also her sister Barbara and her nephew George both passed away only months before she did. Surviving Phyllis are her sister Lynn, nieces Pamela, Sharon, and Claudia, step-son Ralph, Jr., grand-nephew Matthew, cousin Joanne, and all their families; also many treasured friends including Snezina and her family.
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