Phyllis M. Garnett

Phyllis Marie Garnett was born on December 17, 1957, to Wille and Dorothy Pugh in Kansas City, Missouri.  She was the third oldest of six sisters.

From an early age, Phyllis has many interests.  After graduating from Central High School in 1975, she attended University of Kansas where she studied engineering.  She later studied nursing and worked in the medical field until she was injured.  Unable to finish her medical program, she attended DeVry where she studied informational technology receiving her degree and working in the field of IT for several years.  But, Phyllis found her true passion in Marriage and Family Therapy, receiving her Master’s Degree at Friends University.  Phyllis worked as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Therapeutic Transformational Life Coach in her own business “Mindful Matters Marriage and Family Therapy” until her passing.

At an early age, while a member of Second Baptist Church, Phyllis accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior.  She later joined the Linwood Blvd SDA Temple where she became an active member serving as Bible worker for her church, as well as for the Central States Conference of Seventh Day Adventists.

Phyllis also sang beautifully using her talents in the adult choir, directing the youth choir at Beacon Light SDA Church, and singing with the Garth Gabriel Singers gospel group.

Phyllis fell in love with and married Ron Garnett in 2014.  It was then that she founded the Garnett Cancer Society in honor of his former wife who had succumbed to cancer.  The society would provide pertinent and professional information to lessen the fear of the word “cancer”, especially in the black and brown communities.  The GCS has made a positive difference in the lives of many.

In 2019, Phyllis was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer.  Although she received timely surgery and treatment, the cancer later metastasized and she succumbed to this virulent form of cancer in 2022.

Phyllis leaves to mourn her passing, her husband Ron Garnett; her two sons Ja’Son Forte (Jamie) and Vincent Jamierson II; her sister’s two sons Justin Sullivan (Melissa) and Antoinne Jones-Pugh, whom she raised as her own while their mother was deployed in the military; her mother Dorothy Pugh; her sisters June Pugh, Teresa Taylor (Ronnie), Sharon Pugh, Cynthia Pugh, and Lisa McArthur (Douglass), her grandchildren, as well as a host of nieces, nephews, aunts, cousins, and friends.