Phyllis Marie Woodsum

WAYNE – Surrounded by family, Phyllis Marie Woodsum, 94, died on May 12, 2023. Phyllis, born Sept. 17, 1928, was raised in Medford, Mass. with her three siblings by a single mother (Helen Tolman) during the Depression in Massachusetts. She was fun loving and gregarious from the start with lots of friends and was an artist from a young age.

When she was 15, she joined the Civil Air Patrol by creating the first female squadron and earned many leadership citations, learning to fly at Bolton Airport in Massachusetts. In February 1949, she married George A. Woodsum, a pilot and Captain in the Army Air Corps, at Tufts University Chapel, nearby to Jumbo the Elephant. They began their life of adventures with a six-month honeymoon in Paris. Returning home, they settled into Sterns Village at Tufts University for several years where George studied while Phyllis began raising their family of four children and upon moving to Tyngsboro, Mass. founded a nursery school. Phyllis and George built their dream house in Ridgefield, Conn. and were founding members of the Ridgefield First Church of Christ Scientist. Their new community of church builders became their closest lifelong friends. During this time Phyllis studied art with Master Watercolorist Frank Soltesz.

The next adventure was to move back to their ancestral home of Maine settling at MainStay Farm in Wayne. Phyllis taught art classes locally and some of her own paintings were displayed at the Maine State House. At 50 years old, Mom went to college at Western Connecticut State College earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Secondary Education. This led to a 25-year career teaching at Lewiston High School where she was affectionately known as Mémé.

In her later years, Mom spent a lot of time reminiscing about the special places in her life: Cundy’s Harbor visiting her Aunt Winnie and Uncle Ralph during summers; Green Pond where four generations of Woodsums and close friends gathered for summers; Ridgefield, Conn. while her two older children were teenagers; and her 54 years at MainStay Farm where she daily enjoyed family and the beauty of nature.

Phyllis was predeceased by her bother, Linwood “Lonnie” in childhood; mother, Helen; husband, George in 1993; brother, Bill Tolman, and brother-in-law, Harvey Robinson.

She is survived by: her twin sister, Winne Robinson and her sister-in-law, Barbara Tolman; her children Karen Marie Woodsum of Wayne, Steven Douglas Woodsum and his wife Kathryn of Kents Hill, Paul Gilbert Woodsum and his wife Karen of Medfield, Mass., and Gayle Marion; her nine grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and one great-great-granddaughter – Doug Felt and his wife Carey Donegan (Alexzander Donegan and his wife Bianca and their daughter Saoirse; Elizabeth, Victoria and Evangeline Felt), Scott Felt and his partner Niki Cote, Jen Felt and her husband Sam Slosberg (Anneke, Leia and Miles Slosberg); Nic Woodsum and his wife Lisa (Wyatt), Michael Woodsum (Ava), Keith Woodsum; Chris Woodsum and his fiancé Jen Shonborn, Jason Woodsum and his partner Christina Sahli, and Peter Woodsum and his fiancé Amber Skerry; and many nieces, nephews and friends.

Phyllis will be held dear to the hearts of her family and friends as her spirit surrounds us all in love. A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, May 27. Please contact Karen or Steve if you wish to attend.

Arrangements are under the care and direction of Dan & Scott’s Cremation & Funeral Service, 488 Farmington Falls Rd., Farmington, ME 04938

The family is grateful for the wonderful caregivers of Androscoggin Hospice House and request memorial donations in her name

be made to:

Androscoggin Hospice House: Development Office

15 Strawberry Ave.

Lewiston, ME 04240