It is with a mixture of grief and joy that we announce the passing of Kenneth Dale Phillips, age 89, on Sunday, August 18, 2024. He died at his home in Denton, Texas with his wife and daughter, Penny, by his side.

Dale was born January 6, 1935, in Iredell, Texas. He's the son of the late Kenneth Freamon Phillips and Gladys Taylor. He had an older sister, Charles (Siske) and younger brother, Danny. He graduated from Iredell High School in 1953, then attended Tarleton Junior College in Stephenville, Texas before transferring to North Texas State University (NTSU, now University of North Texas) in Denton where he completed his BA degree in Industrial Arts.  After graduation he moved to Lubbock to work in the book bindery at Texas Tech University.

During this time, he met Martha Pearl Hitt—at a square dance of all places! He quickly became a part of her extensive family, and they married on August 18, 1962, in Wolforth, Texas. After their wedding they promptly moved to Amarillo where he continued to work in a bindery and their son Kendall was born.

In August 1967, with a pregnant wife, young son and a new job at the NTSU book bindery, he relocated back to Denton. He spent the rest of his career running the book bindery at the university, retiring after 29 years of service.

Dale & Martha have been dedicated active members of Asbury Methodist Church since they arrived in Denton. They found friends and family there and a place where their young family could grow spiritually and serve. They were founding members of the 3M Sunday School Class; Dale was an usher for many years & served on multiple boards and teams in his active years. He especially enjoyed working with the A.R.M. food bank & helping with the annual Toy Store.

Dale was an avid airplane hobbyist, and on any given Saturday morning, you could find him at the flying field with his latest RC plane in tow.  He loved working with his hands, building, painting, working on cars (though maybe more of a necessity than a mere hobby), and after retirement, even cooking and trying new recipes. He had a small workshop at home, where he would rebind heirloom bibles for family & friends, even after he retired. Dale and Martha enjoyed traveling to visit family & friends and loved including airplane and old country music museums and festivals that always "happened" to be en route. They didn't mind taking the long way.

Dale was preceded in death by his father (1982) and mother (1992), sister Charles Siske (1988), and brother Danny (2023). He is survived by his loving wife, Martha, and three children, Kendall, Penny and Kerry, as well as daughter-in-love, Cherie, two grandteenageers, Denton & Dallas and loads of nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, it was Dale's wish that any memorial tributes be made in the form of charitable donations to his favorite charity, Asbury Relief Ministry (A.R.M.).To give online, click this link http://asburydenton.org/give and select A.R.M. from the dropdown menu.

Checks can be mailed directly to:
Asbury UMC
117 Hercules Lane
Denton, TX 76207

Celebration of Life for Kenneth Dale Phillips

Saturday, August 31, 2024

11:00am - Visitation

11:30am - Memorial Service

12:30pm - Luncheon & Visitation

Asbury United Methodist Church

117 Hercules Lane

Denton, TX 76207

Livestream links for those who can't attend in person:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/asburyumcdenton

Facebook Live: @AsburyDenton (Asbury United Methodist Church)

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