Phyllis Burnett

Phyllis Hancock Burnett was born to parents Jacque and Tyre Hancock and sister Cindy Hancock Crawford. She grew up in Abilene, TX and attended Wylie high school where she met and married her soulmate Ray Burnett. They eventually moved to DFW in 1983 and had two beautiful children, Kristen and Garrett. Phyllis passed away quietly on February 2, 2016. She is survived by her husband Ray Burnett, daughter Kristen (Steve) Gee, grandchildren Les, May and Henry, and son Garett (Whitney) Burnett. She will be lovingly remembered as a prayerful, loving, compassionate, wife, mother, Mimi, sister and friend. She spent her short time here treating everyone she met as if they were the only person in the room. In her passing we now see clearly what was veiled from us by our busy lives. She was a powerful conduit of the Love of Christ. Phyllis gave generously to everyone she met. We say "met" and not "knew" because the wake of her light was not limited to those who loved her. Cashiers, baristas and strangers in bookstores could not help but get caught in the trail of kindness and compassion of this child of God. As stories flood inboxes, voicemails and social media walls since her passing from people we barely or never knew, we are now just beginning to understand the scope of what we had in her life. We know that there are acts of kindness she performed that are forever hidden in the hearts of those who have no idea her name was Phyllis, and that she passed on a Tuesday morning in February among those who knew her name well. For those of us who did know her name, we have found words like "cheated" and "too soon" on the tips of our tongues and hearts over the past hours. Christ tells us that the greatest command is to Love God and to love others. and if we may stumble into human sentimentality for just a moment, if there is a quota to meet on the amount of love we give, then we have not been "cheated," in her short time here, she went above and beyond a lifetime's worth of generosity and compassion. The lives she touched, through the love of her Lord, will stand as proof for generations. Phyllis was often for asking for favors; however none of these favors were for her benefit. She was always leveraging for someone else. She was seeking ways to brighten people's days and lives in big and small ways; and when she could not do it herself, she was trying to find someone who could. In the glaring inequality each of us feel of love received versus love returned to Phyllis, may we, through the ultimate example of Love in Christ, slow down, see people, care for them, know them, visit them, hear them and welcome them as someone more than us and worthy of our time. May we not give in expectation of receiving. And may we always stand amazed not just at the obedience of Phyllis Burnett, but at the One who Loved her first and from whom all blessings flow. A celebration of Phyllis' life will be held Saturday, February 6, 2016 at 2:00 pm at Hunters Glen Baptist Church, 4001 Custer Road, Plano, Texas, 75023.