Phyllis Hoeck

Phyllis Elaine Hoeck entered this world on November 17,1934 and despite growing up in what was considered a man's world at the time, she charted her own course in life, embracing both an unconventional and a non-conformist mindset that is a continuing legacy for her children and grandchildren. Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Helen V (Griffin) and Charley T Foster, Phyllis grew up with her sister Betty Jeanne who was just 13 months younger. Jeanne says, "We were closer than sisters usually are because we were treated as twins and we did everything together." They attended the same grade, were often treated as if they were twins, were dressed alike by their mother until they were in Jr. High when they rebelled. One of Phyllis' first tales of unusual daring was playing with black widow spiders in her playhouse. Her mother came to check on her as she was about five years old, and Phyllis said, "Look, Mother, look how lovely they are!" as they walked across her fingers and crawled up her arms. She abruptly learned how dangerous they were. Her father fumigated the playhouse that night after work. Phyllis graduated from Palmer High School where she loved drama and singing in the Acapella choir and often sang solos. Phyllis had the lead role in The Twelfth Night by Shakespeare. In the junior play Phyllis and Betty Jeanne were chosen to play gangster sisters. She also had a flair for the piano and became an accomplished player. Harvey and Phyllis met in the summer of 1953, she was an 18 year old usherette at the Sky Sox baseball stadium where a handsome Air Force serviceman, 29 years old, saw her and fell in love. At first she rebuffed his advances and charm, but, as she said "I finally gave up on saying, 'No.' " She also told how it took 3-4 dates before Technical Sergeant Harvey Hoeck from Wisconsin started to grow on her. Harvey was a stunning gentleman in those days and Phyllis strongly resembled actress Ava Gardner. The way Harvey tells it, "I had two strikes against me. One I was German. And two I was in the military." As her sister, Jeanne recalls, "In those days it was taboo for a young woman to date an older man and at that time a military man. The boys in high school didn't like it at all." When they decided to marry, Phyllis went on her "North Woods Vacation". While there she sent wedding invitations back to Colorado. Phyllis and Harvey married in Medford, WI on December 5,1953 and raised four kids. Brenda was the first born and preceded them in death in 2009 of illness with cancer. Greg and his wife, Lori, live in Pueblo, Colorado. Deb and the youngest sister, Theresa, live in Wheatland. Grandchildren are Michael, Lawrence "Bob", Rachel and Catherine Norris. Rachel's children are Phyllis' only great-grandchildren, Michael Wilcox and Joseph Norris, Kadie Jo Wilcox preceded Phyllis in death in 2007 of S.I.D.S. Phyllis died peacefully in her sleep, Saturday, February 2, 2013 with Influenza A. Phyllis enjoyed vacationing to visit family in other states, packing up all the kids, she and Harvey would embark on a 2-week adventure. She could remember what all the families had to say and would report back to the Wisconsin family with news. Harvey did most of the driving and Phyllis would make sandwiches and snacks while on the road. It was important to Harvey and Phyllis that the children knew their whole family, as much as possible. The fishing trips in Wisconsin were frequent; she would watch the kids, help them to fish, and fry up the fish over the fire. Phyllis enjoyed fishing and boating. At times she would have Great Aunt Nita watch the kids so she and Harvey, and some relatives could go fishing. Even though the expected reaction to domestic abuse or neglect was to ignore it at the time, (pre 80's) she had a soft spot for the underprivileged and abused. She discretely helped where she could never expecting anything in return. She even once wrote, produced, and directed a play for a 25th wedding anniversary in the family when her kids were quite young. Family members were very supportive and played the various parts. It was a huge hit. Phyllis pioneered Driftwood by Phyl, one of the first at home businesses run by a woman, which included "accessories for the alternative college student." T-Shirt Iron-On Transfers and all sorts of candles and incense, natural shampoos and lotions, jewelry, clothing, and decorative patches. Phyllis loved the strange designs in driftwood. She loved placing glass figurines and artificial plants on the pieces she had collected and Harvey would make some into interesting lamps. The decorations were popular for some time. She and Harvey worked on the 12 room house, remodeling it, and dedicated part of it to The Shop. A spare room with a swinging door became the Black Light Room. Psychedelic posters were displayed on the wall, 48" black lights were placed on the ceiling around the room. The whole room was painted black. There was an 8-Track Tape Player that would blast Santana, The Who, Grateful Dead, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and many more into the room. An added decoration was the worst hard plastic plant which resembled cannabis, under black light. That summer, during a gigantic yard sale, about 6-8 men in black suits, white shirts, black ties and dark sunglasses came snooping through everything including the large vegetable garden. They didn't buy anything. Despite her wild side, Phyllis loved God, family and her community. She took an active interest in all the kids' schooling. She knew all the teachers never hesitating to meet with a teacher if necessary. She was a member of the church choir for years. In her later years she became a valuable source of wisdom and comfort. Some say her ability to "Tell it like it is" will be missed the most. Phyllis and Harvey prayed together each night before going to sleep, thanking God for their blessings and their faith in Him. She was a prayer warrior. The family moved to Colorado in 1976. On election night, in Sterling, CO, Phyllis knew to look in the roll away bed and check all the beds for black widow spiders. She found one. Many trips to the mountains filled weekends. She and Harvey scouted out new fishing areas watching for rattlers along the way. Phyllis was interested in many things. She would photograph, read encyclopedias, and research on the internet if she wanted to learn about something. She was always inquisitive and genuinely interested to learn new things. When Phyllis and Harvey moved to Wyoming in 1992, they relished taking drives and exploring the outdoors. An avid rock hound, Phyllis found Wyoming to be the perfect place for her hobby. Another hobby, one probably borne of her love of drama and visual arts that she loved was videography. The family joke was that she must have the video camera attached to her shoulder. She loved to film family and natural events like storms. If she had been born a bit later in time, she might very well have been the first tornado chaser. One time however, May 5, 1994, a storm had its turn at chasing. Phyllis and Harvey had spent the day at Johnson Reservoir (now dry) filming the clouds and lightening. With her video camera perched on her shoulder, Phyllis was filming the storm when she got struck by lightning. Her camera still rolling spun around and filmed her arm flying through the air before it hit the ground breaking. Phyllis came to in about 20 minutes and her first thought was her camera. Harvey said, "Get in the car." The film was salvaged and featured on the Leeza Gibbons Show which aired on September 8, 1994. They flew Phyllis and Harvey out to California to be on the show for a few minutes which covered unusual accidents of nature people lived to tell about and got on video. When recently asked what adjectives described Phyllis, both her children and grandchildren came up with the words like: Fearless, kind, giving, unique, genuine, and loving. As her grandson Mike wrote on his Facebook page: "My Grandmother was an amazing woman. She was always there to listen when we needed her. She was always there to give us all of her love. She was always there for whatever we needed. She never ever judged us, ever. She was a very strong woman. I loved her with all my heart and I know she is ok wherever she has gone." Link to her Facebook Memorial Page: https://www.facebook.com/PhyllisHoeckMemorialPage