Murrel Edward Phillips, age 95, a resident of St. Mary’s, Kansas, passed away Saturday, December 24, 2022, in St. Mary’s. He was born October 3, 1927, in Arcadia, Kansas, the son of J.C. Phillips and Gracie Koppa Phillips. Murrel attended Ft. Scott High School and graduated with the Class of 1945. Soon after graduating, he joined the United States Navy where he served in the Pacific Theater until the end of World War II. Following his service with the Navy, Murrel married Lucile M. Crystal on March 6, 1949, at the Cherry Grove Baptist Church south of Ft. Scott.
Murrel and Lucile had two children, Linda and Ronald. In earlier years, Murrel was an active member of the Cherry Grove Baptist Church. The family later moved to Kansas City where Murrel was employed by General Motors for thirty years. While in Kansas City, he was a member of the Haven Baptist Church. Following his retirement from General Motors, Murrel and Lucile returned to Ft. Scott where he worked for area farmers. In 1992, they relocated to Baldwin City, Kansas and later to Wamego, Kansas, in 2017, to be near their family. Murrel thoroughly enjoyed spending time with his grandkids and watching them participate in their various sports and activities. He will be greatly missed by friends and family.
Survivors include his wife, Lucile; and his two children, Linda Sledd (Lynn) of Wamego, Kansas and Ronald Phillips (Pamela) of Hiawatha, Kansas; four grandchildren, Jamie Sledd, Shawn Phillips, Kyle Phillips and Kim Sledd Hall and their spouses. Also surviving are fourteen great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, J.C. and Gracie Phillips and siblings, Clarence, Fredrick, Darrel, Mary Alice, Alpha, Wanda and Dee.
Graveside services will be held at 2:30 P.M. Friday, December 30th at the Large Cemetery south of Ft. Scott. The family will receive friends on Friday from1:30 P.M. until leaving for the cemetery at 2:15 P.M. at the Cheney Witt Chapel. Memorials are suggested to the Cherry Grove Baptist Church and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
