Obituary of Anne Carr Phillips

Anne Carr “Gammy” Phillips formerly of Dorchester and Braintree MA and Oakville, Ontario died peacefully on September 24 at the Reston Hospital Center in Reston, VA. after a brief illness.

Anne leaves behind her daughter Kerri (Caren) Toloczko and son-in-law Mike of Sterling, VA, granddaughter Caitlin Smith of Port Credit, Ontario, grandson Army Lt. Connor Houston currently of Fort Benning, Georgia, and her beloved sister, Clare Carr McLaughlin (Francis) of West Roxbury, MA.

In addition to her numerous precious nieces and nephews, she will also be missed by many of Kerri, Caitlin and Connor’s friends to whom she was also treasured “Gammy.”

She is predeceased by her parents Anna Lynch and John Andrew Carr, brothers Francis and William Carr, husband Herbert J. Phillips, Jr. and infant daughter Mary Phillips.

She was born at St. Margaret’s Hospital in Dorchester, MA in 1926, attended St. Margaret’s Grammar and High Schools and met Herb at a St. Margaret’s Sodality social.  She was working as a secretary at the Boston Herald when they married in 1953. They lived in Massachusetts until 1976 when they moved to Oakville, Ontario Canada where Anne served for many years as the President of the Oakville Chapter of the American Women’s Club.  

Anne was best known in the community as the longest serving Welcome Wagon hostess in the area, and loved her job welcoming newcomers to Oakville.  She enjoyed many trips in Canada, the U.S., the Caribbean, Mexico and Europe with Herb and remembered every detail of her travels.  

Everyone Anne met was a friend, and she was always interested in the stories and experiences of people she encountered in every season of her life.  Always a book in her hand and a smile on her face, Anne’s wisdom, memory for history and literature and sense of humor will be missed by all who knew and loved her.  

Kerri, Mike, Caitlin and Connor also wish to extend their gratitude for the wonderful, loving care she received in the last few years from her friends, the healthcare aides at Atria (formerly Brookdale) of Sterling.

In memory of Suki, Anne’s feline companion of 21 years and her love for animals, the family would be grateful for donations in her memory to the Loudoun Country Humane Society at https://humaneloudoun.org/.  

A Mass of celebration will be held at St. Teresa of Calcutta Catholic Church (formerly St. Margaret’s) in Dorchester, MA at 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 27 with a reception for family and friends to follow.  

Interment at the Massachusetts National Cemetery at Bourne will take place the previous day, Friday, October 26, at 1:30 pm.