Phyllis R. Willis

Phyllis Rexine (Westcott) Willis, 74, of Fertile, Iowa, died Wednesday, April 26, 2017, at her home surrounded by family.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 11 a.m., on Thursday, May 4, 2017, at State Park Lodge, in Clear Lake.  Following the Celebration of Life, a meal and visitation will be held from 12-3 p.m. with Niman Ranch products provided and potluck side dishes accepted.  Inurnment will be in Grant Township Cemetery in Fertile.

In lieu of customary remembrances, please consider a donation in her name to the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF).   INHF is a statewide nonprofit conservation organization that works with private landowners and public agencies to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water and wildlife. Since its founding in 1979, members and staff have protected more than 150,000 acres of Iowa’s natural resources.

Phyllis was born to Esther (Jacobsen) and Rex Hennis Westcott on Sept. 18, 1942.  She attended school in Ventura, graduating in the class of 1961. In high school, she was a star basketball player.  She held the high school scoring record for several years.  She was unsuccessfully recruited by a professional women’s basketball team from Texas when she was only 16 and a sophomore in high school, but her dad wouldn’t let her go.  As a senior, she was on the team that went to the Iowa Girls State Basketball tournament.

After high school, she attended American Academy of Beauty in Des Moines and returned home where she worked in a salon in Clear Lake as a beauty operator.

She married Monte Haag on Oct. 5, 1963. They lived in Waterloo where she worked at the Public Library until her daughter, Anne Hennis, was born.  Her younger daughter, Sarah Westcott was also born in Waterloo.  She was then divorced and returned to Clear Lake.

She married Myron Haugen on Aug. 14, 1971.  They were divorced three years later.  On Feb. 2, 1976, she married Paul Willis and they spent 37 years of married life on a farm near Thornton, Iowa.  Paul adopted both of her daughters.

She was co-founder of the Niman Ranch Pork Company along with Paul Willis.  She was extremely proud of this and enjoyed hosting farm tours for many guests from all over the country and sharing her knowledge of animal husbandry and sustainable agriculture.

She loved playing Bridge, bird watching, going on nature rides and picking up trash along the roads, but nothing was more fun than enjoying people from all walks of life.  She was very active politically.  She cared for the planet.  Most of all she loved her family and her friends.

Many have had so many fond memories with her in her warm, cozy kitchen tossing around stories and ideas, enjoying her specialty Danish Pork Burgers, walking her garden, cutting labels for her dream project, gathering wild native prairie seeds, her infectious laughter as company arrived for a visit, her tenderness towards homeless kittens and little creatures that turned up at her door, her love of her girls and her joy in getting together with friends.  She loved being considered an activist and making a difference.   

She was preceded in death by her parents, Rex and Esther Westcott.

She is survived by her daughters, Anne (Charles) Happel, of Des Moines and Sarah Willis and her daughter, Sophia, of Clear Lake; ex-husband, Paul Willis, of Thornton; a sister, Gayle Stokes, of Garner, Iowa; a brother, Richard Westcott, of Kansas City, Mo.; nephews, Shane and Chris Stokes and Brook Westcott; and nieces, Margaux Foster and Danielle Westcott.

Ward-Van Slyke Colonial Chapel, Clear Lake, was in charge of arrangements.