Phyllis Byrne

The Summer Wind Came Blowin’ In From Across The Sea. It Lingered There . . .

and touched and took our great beloved matriarch PHYLLIS BYRNE nee O’Connor three days before her 92nd birthday. Phylis was born in San Diego and moved to San Rafael as a toddler when her Navy father was reassigned. This continued a long line of the King and Jones rancher families settling in the North Bay from the 1800s. Her great grandparents were William Jones of Tennessee and Rebecca Farley, a survivor of the crossing of the Sierra as part of the Donner Party in the winter of 1846. Phyl’s father, Timothy O’Connor, fought in World War I in the Pacific and had his familial roots in County Kerry, Ireland, where both his parents crossed the Atlantic in 1885. Phyl’s mother, Gertrude O’Connor, was a terrific inspiration to her family, a native Petaluman and a homemaker extraordinaire. Phyl met her husband, James, in the 1950s and they settled in the newly founded community of Santa Venetia in eastern Marin County. Phyl had an older sister, Patricia Flagerman, who was more than a sibling – in fact, her best friend. Phyl was blessed with two remarkable children, Lisa and Jimmy, both outstanding models of respectable and caring family members. Phyl’s life was not without pain: she lost her husband, Jim, to an insufferable debilitating disease in the prime of his life. That same disease claimed her wonderful daughter years later. Never one for self-pity, Phyl carried on with poise, dignity and class. She exploited her inherent talents in arts and crafts, demonstrating her expertise in doll-making and beautiful landscape paintings. So much of her home is decorated with the results of her vibrant artistic efforts. Her delve into family ancestry became a passion for Phyl. That family tree she labored over grew into a forest of ancestral branches, limbs and roots. She loved her Irish heritage. Phyl also enjoyed her knack for gardening, with yearly vegetable abundance, and in her later years, herbal creations. Her devotion to opera (Pavarotti!) was only surpassed by her appreciation and love of Old Blue Eyes. You knew you were at Phyl’s house by the walls vibrating with the light baritone dulcet voice of Sinatra. Phyl’s matriarchal devotion to her familial instincts coincided with her impressive career choices. She was secretary to San Rafael Mayor Paul Bettini and later assisted in Home Economics at Terra Linda High School. Her last decades of employment were spent with the County of Marin’s Departments of Elections, Assessor and Recorder. You could always determine if Phyl was at work or at home by the presence of her cherished gray VW Beetle. That car WAS Phyllis Byrne. This matriarch is survived by her son, Jim (and wife Mary), four grandchildren – Alexander, Heather, Megan and Rebecca, along with four great-grandchildren, Jocelyn, Logan, Asher and Willow. She will be missed by her niece, Joan Pearson (and husband John), and nephew, Tim Flagerman.

Phyllis’s family would like to express sincere gratitude to the doctors and staff at Kaiser in San Rafael and Novato. Special thanks are also extended to Phyllis’s personal physician, Dr. Chin, and her caregivers, especially Emily Chambers.

There will be a memorial service with family and friends at Parent Sorensen Mortuary, 850 Keokuk Street, Petaluma from 6:00 to 7:00 PM on Tuesday September 2nd In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations to The National Ataxia Foundation and the Assistance Dog Institute of Santa Rosa in her memory.

Godspeed to you, dear Phyllis. May the Road rise up to meet you.