Gertrude Philp, died peacefully at her home in Fort Worth, on October 7, 2015, at the age of 93. Her spirit is carried on by her three children, six grandchildren, three great-grandchildren, and an extended family of relations and friends from every walk of life.  She is preceded in death by her husband of sixty-four years and the love of her life James Edward (Ed) Philp. They were married in 1943 and settled in Beaumont where she established roots and raised her family.  Gertrude worked as a substitute teacher for South Park Independent School District for twenty-five years and served as her daughters’ 4H Club leader. Ed and Gertrude were members of Roberts Avenue Methodist Church where she was involved in both the Sunday school class and the youth program and volunteered as the church’s secretary for fifteen years.  Later, they transferred to Trinity United Methodist Church and were members there for over ten years.  She was active with the Sunday school class and spent countless hours organizing the class’s annual garage sales.  Gertrude volunteered at Trinity United Methodist Church as a greeter and each Sunday would welcome people as they walked into church. 

At their home on Boyd Street, the sound of dominos shuffling and the laughter of dear friends filled the house regularly.  Every night when Ed returned home from work, she would brew a pot of coffee and they would read the evening edition of the Beaumont Enterprise together.  Ed was the consummate gardener and as a result Gertrude was quite the expert in hulling peas, snapping beans, and canning vegetables.  Each summer she canned peaches and preserved figs.  Gertrude loved to go to the beach anytime the wind was from the north to seine with Ed and the kids. She enjoyed camping with family and friends at every opportunity and was adept at creating a campsite with all the amenities of home. Gertrude particularly enjoyed camping at Blue Hole in Wimberley, where she would float in an inner tube in the cool water of the creek, cup of coffee in hand, occasionally drifting closer to land in search of a person to refill her cup. 

She was a talented seamstress who made clothes for her children until they started families of their own. Gertrude was an outstanding Christmas candy maker. She was an avid reader and a lover of nature’s beauty.  Gertrude always had a pack of Wrigley’s Double Mint gum in her purse and a gallon of Blue Bell Buttered Pecan ice cream in her freezer. She was never shy, always spoke her mind, and freely offered her opinion. Gertrude was a social butterfly who never met a stranger and had an uncanny ability to recall the most obscure details of a person’s life story. She was a force to be reckoned with. 

For the better part of a decade, she took care of Ed after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.  When he died in 2007, she found a home-away-from-home at Nutrition and Services for Seniors in Beaumont where she enjoyed having lunch and spending many long afternoons playing cards with friends.  In 2013, Gertrude moved to Fort Worth, to be near her family. She spent her final years living at the Brookdale Ridgmar independent living community where she made many friends and found a domino or card game every day of the week.

Survivors include her brother, Roy Ballard of Vidor; children, Joy Lott, of Fort Worth; Gayle Benson and her husband, Rickey, of Magnolia; and Jimmy Philp and his wife, Beth, of Arlington; grandchildren, Shannon Breaux and her husband, Kirk; Brian Lott and his wife, Jeanne; Randee Herrin and her husband, Brad; Abigail Philp; Rebecca Philp; and Jayme Philp; great-grandchildren, Keller Herrin, Andee Herrin, and Emma Lott; and many nieces and nephews.

Her final wishes were for a simple graveside service which will be held at 10:30 am, Tuesday, October 13, 2015, at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, 4955 Pine Street, Beaumont, under the direction of Broussard’s, 1605 North Major Drive, Beaumont.

In lieu of flowers, her family would be honored by memorial donations to Nutrition and Services for Seniors, Attn: Executive Director, 4590 Concord, Beaumont, Texas 77703.