Phyllis Gendel Hunter

1956 - 2026

Phyllis Gendel Hunter passed away at 11:35 p.m. February 21, 2026 in Arlington, Texas at Arlington Memorial Hospital at the age of 69 after a painful six-month battle with cancer.



Phyllis was born in Dallas, Texas on October 1, 1956 to Neiman Gendel and Peggy Ann Meadows Gendel. She attended school at William Lipscomb Elementary, Reinhardt Elementary, Robert Thomas Hill Junior High, Bryan Adams High, Eastfield Junior College, Richland Junior College, and the University of Texas at Arlington, graduating with the degree of Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting.



Phyllis's father Neiman didn't give his children middle names, a lack which disappointed her. Having learned that she could choose the name to be read at her high school graduation, she entered the name Phyllis Rebecca Gendel. When her mother heard this name announced, she was appalled and scolded Phyllis for the mischief. It was only upon her mother's death in 1995 that Phyllis learned her mother had legally changed her own birth name from Peggy India Meadows to Peggy Ann Meadows.



A Polish Jew, her father raised her in Judaism at Temple Emanu-El until his death in 1967. She then attended the Methodist church with her mother Peggy. She received the Lord Jesus Christ as her Savior at about the age of 14 in a Baptist youth camp, and in 1973 she began meeting with the church in Dallas. In 1977 she migrated to Arlington to meet with the church in Arlington and finish college at UTA.



Phyllis met her husband, Tommy, in 1973 in the meetings of the church in Dallas. Tommy had also attended Reinhardt Elementary School, and Phyllis had vivid memories of a boy in a suit playing a minuet on the piano in the talent show and even recalls feeling a crush for that boy. In 1973 as she got to know Tommy in the church and in high school, she realized that he was the young pianist in the Reinhardt talent show, and thus she always traced her love for him to elementary school.



Another of Phyllis's memories was being at a parade with her father on Main Street in downtown Dallas. He opened a door and she saw a long staircase ascending just inside the door, and he mentioned to her that it was one of his clients in his advertising business. Years later, Tommy took her to his father's place of business, Pope Testing Laboratories, on Main Street. As soon as he opened the door and she saw the long staircase, she wondered if it was the same place her father had shown her as a little girl. When she entered the office at the top of the stairs, she saw the advertising materials from her father's business.



Phyllis and Tommy were married February 1, 1979 in Arlington at the home of Dalton and Shirley Rhea. During the 1980's she bore Tommy four lovely children, each born at Arlington Memorial Hospital.



After years of minor part-time work as an accountant while raising her children, Phyllis became a realtor in 1996 and was an outstanding realtor until the day of her death. As a realtor, she worked for several brokerages including Ebby Halliday, Henry S. Miller, Coldwell Banker, Prudential, REMAX, Cearnalco, Front Real Estate, and Compass. Shortly after beginning at Ebby Halliday, Phyllis met her earliest real estate mentor, June Niven, one of the finest realtors in Arlington's history.



Countless people have known Phyllis to be warm, kind, cherishing, and aggressively generous. As she raised her kids with the sisters in the church, neighbors, and friends, many children came under her care. She had a knack for finding what made each person special and loving them for it. When her children and their friends grew up, she continued to love them in this way, remembering them and the things that were important to them.



As a realtor she had a unique ability to absorb the stress of her clients. She saw this as a fundamental part of her job. She also said many times that her "marketing budget" was best used in cherishing her clients with meals, practical help, and small gifts for their homes and their children. She was a great saleswoman, but she never put a sale ahead of the people. She became the surrogate mother and true friend to many clients over the years, just as she did with everyone in her life.



Phyllis lived a life of serving the Lord and loving Jesus. Not only did she participate in decades of practically serving in the church, but she shepherded others continuously. She was always concerned about someone, sending a text of encouragement, or a little gift and note to let them know she was thinking of and praying for them. Even in the last months while she was sick, she was more concerned for sharing Christ than complaining about her situation with even those closest to her. Most significantly, Phyllis filled herself with the Bible and the healthy ministry. She was always listening to a message, had a verse or a quote to share, or a hymn to sing.



Phyllis is survived by her husband of 47 years, Thomas Miles Hunter; and



Four children Andrew Marcus Hunter, Aaron Madison Hunter, Alan Michael Hunter, and Margaret Ann Hunter Woods;



Andrew's wife Agnes Joyun Yu Hunter, Alan's wife Hannah Lee Simpson Hunter, and Margaret's husband John William Woods;



Five granddaughters Elanor Aurelia Hunter, Marianne Elizabeth Aurora Hunter, Alice India Woods, Josephine Kristin Joy Hunter, and Molly Margot Woods;



Sister Susan Gendel Thompson, husband Gary Alan Thompson, son Kyle Adrian Sainz and daughter Kelly Marie Sainz;



Sister Elizabeth Gendel Staples, husband Philip Clayton Staples, son John Hartman Staples and wife Jennifer Nash Staples, daughter Clarissa Libby Staples Hall and husband Micah Thomas Hall, and daughter Abby Jewett Staples Bauer and husband Stanley Bauer;



Half-brother Harry Gendel and wife Diane (Phyllis reconnected with Harry in recent years by email and also did a bit of real estate work with Diane, a fellow realtor);



Brother-in-law Michael Stuart Hunter and wife Debra Ann Sauter Hunter, son Robert Stuart Hunter and wife Christina Lynn Reichenbach Hunter, and son Philip Michael Hunter and wife Jennifer Violet Sims Hunter;



Sister-in-law Linda Diane Hunter Price, husband Shaun Victor Price, son Daniel Chapman Price and daughter Emma Victoria Price.



A come-and-go reception will be held in memory of Phyllis on Saturday, March 14th from 2:30-4:30 p.m. at 4731 Oak Club Drive, Arlington, TX 76017. All are welcome to stop by to see the family during this time. Those who attend may park in the neighborhood, but please be mindful of the neighbors and their driveways.