Joan Ellen Phillips Fowler

Beloved daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, Joan Ellen Phillips Fowler of Emporia, died on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at Osage Nursing Center in Osage City, Kansas. She was 81.

Joan was born on August 4, 1944, in Osage City, Kansas, the daughter of Oliver Henry (Pete) and Hazel L. Johnson Bolyard. She married Robert E. Phillips on January 29, 1965. He died on March 23, 1993, in Eskridge. She later married Harry L. Fowler, Jr., on March 4, 2006, in Emporia. He died on September 7, 2024, in Emporia.

Surviving family members include her sons, Tom (Amy) Phillips, Bradley Phillips, and Jared Phillips, all of Allen; stepsons, Wes Fowler and Larry (Pam Landis) Fowler of Emporia; stepdaughter, Nancy Fowler of Emporia; grandchildren, Tyler (Mindy) Phillips, Clay (Amanda) Phillips, Clayton (Kimberlyn) Fowler, Robert Phillips, Cohle Phillips, Myra Phillips, Hank Phillips, Carter Phillips, Gus Phillips, and Hazel Phillips; great-grandchildren, Parker Phillips, Madilyn Phillips, and Sutton Phillips; brother-in-law, Mike Kuhn; sisters-in-law, Susan Bolyard and Della Phillips; “sister” Ava Zumbrunn and “daughter” Jana Phillips.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husbands, Robert E. Phillips and Harry L. Fowler, Jr.; and her brother, Mack Bolyard.

Joan found joy in sewing, cooking, reading, and gardening, with her flowerbeds being a great source of pride. She had a lifelong love of animals, with her favorites, Daisy and Toto, preceding her in death. Joan lived out her life in the country, loving life on the farm. She enjoyed watching westerns, tending her hummingbird feeders, and, of course, cheering for the Chiefs, Wildcats, and Jayhawks alongside her husband, Harry. Joan worked for the State of Kansas from 1964 to 1971 and for the Farm Service Agency from 1986 to 2015.

Cremation is planned, with a visitation on Sunday, December 28, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Roberts-Blue-Barnett Funeral Home in Emporia. A memorial service will be held on Monday, December 29, at 1:00 p.m. at Harveyville United Methodist Church, with burial following at Admire Cemetery in Admire, Kansas. Memorial contributions to the iBaptist Church Building Fund may be sent in care of Roberts-Blue-Barnett Funeral Home, P.O. Box 175, Emporia, Kansas 66801.