Local 1000 member Utah Phillips died Friday night, May 23, 2008, in bed at home in Nevada City, CA. His wife, Joanna Robinson, was at his side. Utah had been ill with congestive heart failure for over six years. Born in Cleveland on May 15, 1935, he had marked his 73rd birthday eight days earlier.
According to his son, Duncan, Utah asked that his body “not be embalmed, and be laid to rest in a plain hand-made wooden coffin, to expedite his return to the earth.” A funeral will take place on Thursday, May 29, in Nevada City, with a memorial service to follow on Sunday, June 1. The family requests memorial donations to Hospitality House, a homeless shelter Utah helped to found in Grass Valley, CA.
In addition to his wife and son Duncan, Utah is survived by another son and a daughter, a grandchild, and several stepchildren and siblings.
Spring 2008