Phyllis Trudeau , April 23, 1927 — April 19, 2018

Phyllis Trudeau was born on April 23, 1927, in Spokane, Washington, and died on April 19, 2018, in Walnut Creek, after a very brief illness. Phyllis was born to Bernice K. and Arnold C. Hintz. She attended public schools and the Church of Christ in Spokane, along with older brother Phil, and endured the Depression with her immediate and extended family.

In the late 1940s she completed her Bachelor’s degree at the University of Washington, and moved soon thereafter to San Francisco. … Read More » It was in the Bay Area that she later met Richard Trudeau, whom she married on New Year’s Eve, 1960. Richard became General Manager of the East Bay Regional Park District, and was a champion of open space for urban dwellers, and Phyllis was his partner in his challenging professional life.

Phyllis also worked in accounting at UC Berkeley during the period of campus unrest, and had many stories to tell. She was an omnivore of knowledge and experience, and two of her favorite memories were of her solo travel to the Soviet Union and later to China. She subscribed to several newspapers, which she read thoroughly, while her beloved classical music played in the background or foreground.

After Richard died in 2004, Phyllis’s life became smaller but her mind remained as sharp as ever. She was faithful to family and church, and she was the appreciative beneficiary of devoted caregivers. She did not have children of her own, but her two nieces were always surprised and delighted by her easy and fascinating conversation.

Her nieces also came to respect the wisdom in her routines, and the compassion in her stubbornness. Phyllis was a brave woman. She was a stoic member of a stoic generation, who did not let her stoicism stifle her wonder and curiosity about the world, or her faith in God.

We will miss her. A small graveside service will be held at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, and a memorial and celebration of life is scheduled for July 7 at the Walnut Creek Church of Christ.

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