William Osborn Phillips

Bill was born the middle son of Eleanor and George Phillips in 1928 in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in Hollywood, California until 1942, when the family moved to Sharon, Massachusetts. A bright student, Bill attended Admiral Billard Academy in New London, Connecticut, graduating in 1946 with several track and field letters. His time there ignited a lifelong love of boats, ships, and airplanes.

Bill met his first wife, artist Margaret “Molly” King at a wedding, and they married in 1952. They had two daughters, Linda and Chris, and raised them in Concord, Massachusetts. Bill and Molly remained together until her passing in 1999.

Despite a lack of formal higher education, Bill’s natural brilliance enabled him to great success professionally. A position as a lab assistant at MIT eventually lead him to Oak Ridge, Tennessee where he spent two years working in a gaseous diffusion plant and began his career as a scientific glassblower. By 1953, his knowledge and professional connections netted Bill a job as Supervisor for the Glassblowing Shop for the Goodyear Atomic Energy Commission, where he oversaw the operations of eleven lab departments simultaneously. In a letter from 1954 pertaining to the nature of his work, Bill's supervisor described him as "indispensable", crediting Bill with "qualification not to be found in even the most skilled men of his trade" and praising his knowledge of physics, chemistry, and the unique utility and precision of his glassblowing. Several of Bill's designs were patented by the Goodyear Corporation and several articles of his were published in the scientific journal Analytical Chemistry.

After choosing to pursue interests outside the scientific community, Bill went to work for Spencer Kennedy Labs in 1954, designing TV studios and learning how to operate television cameras. After moving on to Boston-based Lake Systems, he became an early pioneer of closed-circuit television and gave acclaimed presentations on the educational potential of the technology to distinguished institutions, including Brown University, NYU, Northeastern, the Harvard School of Education, and Harvard Medical School. After a distinguished career, he retired to Cape Cod in 1989, and volunteered at the Coast Guard Auxiliary, obtaining his pilot's license at age 69. During his five years there, he inspected commercial fishing vessels and hundreds of pleasure craft, including Walter Cronkite's private boat at the famed broadcaster's invitation.

While some are not afforded even one great love of their life, Bill was lucky enough to have two. When Bill and Betsy Valle met, it was love at first sight. They married in 2001 and Betsy's presence afforded Bill a tremendous renewal of his zest for life. In their 23 years together, Bill and Betsy traveled, delighted in entertaining in their home, and participated in many large family gatherings of the extended Sears and Phillips clans.

Bill will be greatly missed by all who knew him. He is survived by his wife Betsy Valle Phillips, and his two daughters, Linda Phillips and Christine "Chris" Nicosia, and his three granddaughters, Chelsea Spollen, Corinne Siciliano, and Julie Katz. He is predeceased by his brother Reginald and sister Jean.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Bill’s honor can be made to the Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation at http://support.givetocapecodhealth.org/donate or by contacting the Foundation offices at 508-862-5600.