Gary Wilson Phillips

1940 - 2025

Gary Wilson Phillips

June 11, 1940 - July 7, 2025

Overland Park, Kansas - Gary Wilson Phillips passed away peacefully on the afternoon of July 7th, 2025. He is survived by his daughter Tracy Hiesberger and her husband Matthew of Olathe, KS; and his son Brian Phillips and his wife Cindy of La Crescenta, CA. A daughter, Julie Phillips, died in an accident in 2013. He has four grandchildren, Evan Hiesberger, Nathan Hiesberger, Travis Phillips, and Kaylee Phillips; one great grandchild Oliver; and his beloved cat, Tommy. He was born in Golden City, MO on June 11th,1940. His family soon moved to Kansas City, MO where he attended Central High School his freshman year. They then moved to the Hickman Mills area where he graduated from Ruskin H.S. in 1958. Because of a large tornado, which destroyed their high school building in May 1957, Gary attended his senior year in what had been an elementary school. It was the summer after graduation that he really got to know and woo his future wife Virginia a fellow Ruskin grad. Gary spent the next four years in Boston studying physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and writing love letters to Virginia. They became engaged over Christmas '62 and were married in Kansas City on July 20, 1963. They soon moved to College Park, MD where Gary earned his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland in 1967. There followed stays of 2-3 years each in Seattle, WA, Austin, TX and Park Ridge, NJ due to Gary's postdoctoral employment. During this time their daughters Tracy and Julie were born in Seattle, WA and their son Brian was born in Westwood NJ. In 1973 Gary found permanent employment as a physics researcher at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC. Gary and Virginia made their home in Springfield, VA where they lived 33 years raising their family and becoming part of a loving neighborhood. Gary loved skiing, hiking, reading, tending to his rose garden, craft beer and traveling, the Outer Banks of North Carolina and mountains of Utah were his favorite family vacations locales. Besides these family vacations Gary traveled the world extensively through work or on excursions with his wife and other family. He visited all 50 states and over 34 countries. Gary retired from NRL in 2001 and worked part time until 2016 as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University doing research and teaching. In 2006 Gary and Virginia moved from their family home in Springfield to Dumfries, VA. Then in June 2016 they decided to move to Overland Park, KS to be closer to Tracy and their extended family. After Virginia's passing in 2021, Gary eventually moved to Tallgrass Creek Senior Living also in Overland Park. A private family memorial will be held at 4 p.m. on Saturday August 2nd, at Mt. Moriah, Newcomer & Freeman Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers donations may be made in his name to the Parkinson Foundation at https://www.parkinson.org