Phyllis E. (Cassens) Rogers

HOLDEN – Phyllis E. Rogers, 80, of Holden, died in the early hours of Monday, September 28, 2015 at Christopher House, after a brief but courageous battle with cancer. She was born in Monticello, Maine on June 5, 1935; she was one of six children and was the daughter of the late Kenneth H. Cassens and Bertha Sherrard Cassens. Phyllis emigrated to Massachusetts in the early 1950’s with her parents and eventually settled in the Central Massachusetts area where she has resided for the past fifty years. She was widowed mid-life, having lost her husband, Kenneth D. Rogers, on June 12, 1987.

Phyllis spent the majority of her life working in human services, most notably for the Devereux School in Rutland for over thirty-two years. Family and others remember her for bringing children from Devereux home for the holidays, hoping to add positive experiences to their lives. She labored hard for her family. Any one of her children can attest to the things that she went without so they did not. As a cook, she was renowned for her lasagna, beef and bean roll up and sweet potato pie. As a tailor, she sewed many an outfit for her children, created many an afghan to wrap one’s self in as well as sweaters for bundling up some precious grandchildren.

Phyllis was a spiritual woman with a strong love of the Lord. Those who knew her voice as soloist can still imagine the joyful sound of her singing “His Eye is on the Sparrow” or “In the Garden”. With such open faith in mind, she described her life as being “blessed by” her four children, Roben, Charles, Miriam and Heidi. In her retirement she derived much joy from time spent with her grandchildren, gardening as she would say “even in my wheelchair”, and journeys to Maine to see both its ocean and lighthouses. It was during these years that she enjoyed a special bond with her sister Lois. They would speak daily on the phone, and together they made some memorable journeys to destinations ranging from Maine to Alaska.

Those that predeceased Phyllis include her parents, her husband Kenneth, her brothers David L. Cassens and George Cassens, her granddaughter Kristen L. Rogers and most recently her beloved sister Lois M. Cunniff. Those that survive her include her children: Roben E. R. Lapan and her husband Patrick of Brattleboro, VT, Charles E. Rogers and his wife Barbara of Gilbertville, Miriam Rogers Montalvo and her husband Marc of Worcester and Heidi E. Ebers and her husband Elias of Shrewsbury. She also leaves behind her beloved grandchildren: Sarah-Grace Freeman, Margaret Lapan and Harrison Lapan, Jacqueline and Jessica Rogers, Isabella Montalvo, Kevin, Steven and Dylan Ebers as well as her great-granddaughter Lucia Freeman. Additional survivors include her sisters Carla Cassens of Pembroke, and Paula S. Gonzalez of Hickory, North Carolina. Many loving nieces and nephews survive Phyllis as well.

Relatives and Friends are invited to visit with Phyllis' family from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, October 1, at the Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden. A Funeral Service honoring her life will be held at 3 p.m. on Friday, October 2, at the First Congregational Church of Shrewsbury, 19 Church Road. Burial will be private at Pine Grove Cemetery, Oakham.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Christopher House Patient Activities Fund, 10 Mary Scano Drive, Worcester, MA 01605; or to VNA Care Network & Hospice, 120 Thomas St., Worcester, MA 01608-1280. To share a memory or offer an online condolence please "Sign the Guestbook" on this page.