Phyllis Fox Kerns (1935 – 2024)

Phyllis Fox Kerns, also known as “Gma P” and “Gaga,” age 89, of Front Royal, Virginia, passed away on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, in the comfort of her home.

Phyllis Fox Kerns

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, December 7, 2024, at noon at Marlow Heights Baptist Church, 517 Braxton Road, Front Royal, with Rev. Jim Bunce officiating.  The family will receive friends one hour before the service at the church, and a reception will immediately follow the service downstairs.

Mrs. Kerns was born in Front Royal on April 6, 1935, to the late James Lemuel and Maude Vaught Fox.  She was among the last to be born on Skyline Drive, Fox Hollow, before the families were all displaced from the mountain.  Phyllis graduated from Warren County High School at the top of her class in 1954.  She was active in many sports but excelled in Basketball and Volleyball. She was also an avid Redskins/Commanders Fan and Nationals Baseball fan, and she enjoyed watching UVA Basketball.

She was also preceded in death by her husband, Lyle Edward Kerns; brother, James “Jimmy” Fox; sister, Wanda Fox Bryant; sons-in-law, Timothy Wines and Steve Wooddell; and infant son, Baby Kerns.  She worked as an Accounts Payable Supervisor at Avtex for 30 years and retired from Boeing Corporation.  She was a Marlow Heights Baptist Church member, Women of the Moose, Front Royal VFW Auxiliary, Front Royal Red Hatters, and Friends Together at First Baptist Church.  Phyllis enjoyed gardening and “Her Flowers,” but most of all, she enjoyed time spent with her family, church family, and friends.

Survivors include her three daughters, Kimberly Kerns Wines-Wooddell of Front Royal, Tracy Kerns Rutherford (Chuck) of Front Royal and Heather Kerns Medina (Joe) of Capon Bridge, West Virginia; brother, Archie Fox (Emogene) of Strasburg, Virginia; eight grandchildren, Stevie Nowell, Ashley Nowell, Brooke Wines-Dovel, Trey Clater, Chaz Rutherford, Joshua Medina, Jacob Medina and Matthew Medina; seven great-grandchildren and two great-grandchildren on the way.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to Blue Ridge Hospice, 333 West Cork Street #405, Winchester, Virginia 22601, or to Marlow Heights Baptist Church, 517 Braxton Road, Front Royal, Virginia 22630, either by mail or online at https://brhospice.org/donate/ or https://www.marlowheights.org/donate.

“When Flowers Bloom, the Angels Sing.”  Her faith, love of family, and love of plants and flowers will carry on from generation to generation.