Christelle Carter Phillips

Christelle Phillips passed away peacefully on Friday evening, April 17, 2015. Memorial service: 10 a.m. Wednesday, April 29th at Arlington Chapel. Christelle was born on July 21, 1916 in Weatherford to Essie and George Carter. She was raised in Texas where she developed a lifelong love for outdoor gardening and the wildflowers of the Texas hill country. Christelle earned an Associate degree from Weatherford College, went on to study Home Economics at Texas Tech University and taught for several years. She met and married Weldon Phillips of Altus, Oklahoma and they spent the early years of their marriage in Detroit, Michigan. They moved to Arlington in the early 1950s and built their long-time residence, where they raised their son, James Carter Phillips. Christelle enjoyed a long, rewarding career working for LTV in the Aircraft Engineering Division and later for Grayline Tours. She was an active member of the Sigma Beta Phi Sorority for more than 60 yrs, sharing her infectious enthusiasm for social activities, as well as her passion for arts and crafts of all kinds. In her later years, she developed a deep and abiding love for Alaska during her visits with her niece, Sandy Phillips, travelling the Kenai Peninsula in summer and celebrating the Christmas holidays in Anchorage. Christelle will be remembered by her family and friends as a loving, devoted, gracious and caring soul, who gave each of us the enduring gift of her gentle heart. She was preceded in death by her husband, Weldon, in 1992 and her son, Carter in 2006. Survivors: Sister, Mary Weldon of Greenville; grandchildren, Carolyn Piazzo of Reno, NV, Susan Flanary of Bartonville, Jim Phillips of Arlington, and Russell Phillips of Oakland, Calif.