Phyllis I. (Prasol) Gunn

Greenfield, Massachusetts
Phyllis I. (Prasol) Gunn
Phyllis Irene (Prasol) Gunn, 85, of 14 Temple Avenue passed peacefully on Saturday evening, June 28, 2014 at the Poet Seat Health Care Center, following a period of declining health.  A native of Greenfield, she was born on January 4, 1929 to Thomas and Catherine (Piotkowski) Prasol and was educated in Greenfield Public Schools, a graduate of GHS in the Class of 1947. Following graduation from high school, Phyllis worked for the former Montague Rod & Reel Company in Turners Falls, MA. The Rod Shop had sponsored an adult women’s basketball team on which Phyllis was a standout player.
In her youth, she was an avid roller skater and could often be found skating at the former Riverview Roller Rink in Turners Falls, MA or the former roller rink at the Gables in South Deerfield.  Phyllis was an accomplished vocalist who performed at the former Garden Theatre in many minstrel shows, as well as on several “on air” local shows on the W.H.A.I. radio station, both in Greenfield, MA. 
She married David A. Gunn, Sr. in Holy Trinity Church, Greenfield, MA on June 18, 1949.  They made their home in Montague Center MA for many years while raising their family.  Phyllis supported her husband’s service to the community as a volunteer firefighter with the Montague Center Fire Department by becoming a member of the Ladies Auxiliary Canteen for many years.  She was a member of the Catholic Women’s Council of the former St. Mary’s Church in Turners Falls, MA. 
They moved back to Greenfield and Phyllis went to work for the Town of Greenfield School Department, as a teacher's aide for nine years.  In her leisure time, she enjoyed crafts and craft making including: knitting, crocheting, needlepoint, making Christmas decorations and decorative seasonal wreaths, dolls and doll making. She enjoyed polka and country & western square dancing and frequent trips to the ocean at Hampton Beach, NH and to White Horse Beach in Plymouth, MA. 
She is lovingly remembered by her husband of 65 years, David A. Gunn, Sr., of Greenfield, MA, as well as by her adoring children:  Judith L. Rose and her husband John, of South Deerfield, MA; David A. Gunn, Jr. and his wife Lisa, of Friendship, ME; Stephen M, Gunn of Greenfield, MA and Debra J. Kelly and her husband Patrick, of Greenfield, MA.  Additionally, she leaves her grandchildren to cherish her memory: John A. Rose III and his wife Jamie, Jacob Rose and his fiancé Cheri Poirier, Kelsea Gunn-Downes and her husband Jim, Kyla, Jayna and Rylen Kelly and her great grandson, Gavin Rose.  Phyllis was pre-deceased by her parents, as well as her siblings: Katherine, Laura, Jessie, Helen, Jennie, Henry, Edward and Frank and leaves many loving nieces, nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews who remember her with love and affection.
In keeping with Phyllis’s request, formal services will be omitted in lieu of a private celebration of her life, to be observed at the convenience of her family, following cremation.  There will be no visiting hours. Expressions of affection are suggested in the form of a charitable contribution in Phyllis’s memory to: Hospice of Franklin County, 329 Conway Street, Suite 2, Greenfield, MA 01301 or to the Montague CenterFire Department, P.O. Box 237, 28 Old Sunderland Road, Montague Center, MA 01351.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Phyllis I. (Prasol) Gunn, please visit our floral store.