Obituary of Francis H Phillips

Francis H. "Brud" Phillips, age 97, of Kingston passed on February 18th at the Newfield House in Plymouth. He was the son of the late Ethel (Hayden) and Nicholas Phillips of Plymouth and the brother of the late Ruth Jones and her husband Robert of Kingston. He is survived by his beloved nephew and nieces, Philip Jones and his wife Mary (Cadigan) of Plymouth, Lydia (Jones) Mathias and her husband J. Barry of Kingston, and Ellen (Jones) Roth and her husband Vincent of Hull. He also leaves his great nephew John Mathias, his wife Carrie and daughter Meghan of Plympton and he was the great uncle of the late Jeffrey Mathias lost at sea on the El Faro in October, who leaves his widow Jennifer and their children Hayden, Heidi and Caleb of Kingston. Surviving him also is his longtime companion Aletha "Dorothy" Rhodes of Kingston and her family. Brud was one of the few remaining World War II veterans. He entered the Navy in July of 1942 and saw action aboard the destroyers, USS Jeffers and the USS Andromeda. He participated in campaigns in the American Theatre, the European-African and Middle Eastern Theatres and the Asiatic-Pacific. He was honored with the Victory Medal, the Asiatic –Pacific medal with one star, the European –African, Mid-Eastern medal with 2 stars and the American Theatre medal. He was discharged in December of 1945 achieving the rank of Fire Controlman 1/C . During the early years of Brud’s life he worked as a carpenter and for the electric company as a meter reader. When he returned from the Navy he joined his father working the family cranberry bogs. This is where he spent the rest of his life. He worked the Kingston bogs over the years and sold all but the one on Wapping Road, which he named Pine Grove Farm. He upgraded the cranberry acres, planted blueberry bushes, started a Christmas tree farm and grew a fabulous vegetable garden each summer. Brud spent every waking hour working the farm. Not a weed was to be found on the property. He loved being a farmer and having Mother Nature as his boss. A special place where Brud spent time since childhood was the cottage on Curlew Pond that was originally built by his father. In this peaceful environment he swam, canoed, fished and entertained his family and friends. One of the most important parts of Brud’s life was being an Ocean Spray cranberry grower. In the 1930’s Brud and his father became members of the newly formed Ocean Spray Cooperative. He remained a loyal member for over 50 years. His interest, involvement and pride in Ocean Spray was at the forefront of his daily life. Brud will always be remembered for his care and love for his beautiful property and his joy of farming. Many state and federal legislators were hosted on the farm, television crews and newspaper reporters came to interview him and photograph him and his bogs, Chronical News show did a story on Brud and he was named Tree Farmer of the Year in the 70’s. Tourists from all over came to see him and he always had time to tell them about cranberries and of Ocean Spray. He attributed his longevity to the fact that he made cranberries part of his daily diet. When Brud retired he was delighted that part of his family took over his property. It was re-named Bog Hollow Farm, and carries on his tradition. Brud’s "church" was his woods, the bogs, wildlife and nature. As he requested, his family will hold a memorial service this spring at Bog Hollow Farm on the land that he loved. Family and friends are welcome on Saturday, June 4th at 1:00 pm to honor Brud and his legacy. If anyone wishes to make a donation in memory of Brud it may be sent to The Wildlands Trust 675 Long Pond Road Plymouth Ma 02360.