Phyllis Hazel Mossberg grew up an only child in New Haven County of CT and her family settled in the Millbrook area of North Haven when she was ten years old. She was an avid swimmer and diver, Girl Scout, and a true Daddy's Girl.
Phyl attended Stephens College in Missouri, and Boston University, where she earned her degree in Child Care. In 1954, at the suggestion of the minister of the Cheshire Congregational Church, she founded the Cheshire Nursery School, which is still in operation.
Phyl married Ted Palm on February 2, 1952 and honeymooned in Bermuda. Later they moved into their brand new Cheshire home on Carlton Drive and had two daughters. In 1961 Phyl and Ted moved their family into a pink house on Janet Drive, a quiet, dead-end road in North Haven, where they lived until moving to Elim Park in 2003.
Phyl was a bell collector, which began when she was 10 years old. She is member of the American Bell Association (ABA) and, at the peak of her collecting, she owned over five thousand bells.
Phyl was a Girl Scout and had been since she was 10 years old. As an adult, Phyl was a troop leader for every level, during which she inspired girls to achieve goals, including earning funds for special opportunities. While working as a leader, Phyl discovered a need in North Haven, CT for a Girl Scout resource center, so in the 1970s she and a fellow scout established The Mole Hole. When it finally moved out of a cellar, they changed the name to Daisy's Place, after the G.S. founder, Juliette "Daisy" Gordon Low. Daisy's Place was a highly successful Girl Scout resource center for the entire town for over twenty years.
As the Bicentennial was approaching, Phyl wanted to do something special with the Girl Scouts. She created a program for the girls called "If I Were a Girl Scout in 1776." She authored the handbook, designed the badges, wrote the requirements, and even designed a uniform out of green calico material, complete with apron, fichu (scarf), and mob cap.
Phyl has always been fascinated with the history of Girl Scouts, and suggested to National Headquarters to open a small museum. They were unable to, so in the 1980s she and a few friends founded the Historical Committee of North Haven, all the while continuing to lobby for museum space. Finally they received good news; a space in the Council Office! In 2013, the Girl Scouts of Connecticut Historical Museum opened, fulfilling Phyl's lifelong dream!
Both Phyl and Ted loved the water. In the '60s, they bought a cottage for their family on Summer Island, in Branford, CT. It was a friendly, informal setting by the water in Long Island Sound, where impromptu get-togethers were in abundance, walking down the front promenade along the water to visit with friends or relatives was commonplace, and doors weren't locked.
Phyl is survived by daughters Melody Mukon and April Palm, nephew Malcolm Palm, grandchildren, Chelsea Mukon Mayo and Christopher Mukon, and great-grandchildren, Molly Mukon, 4, Jackson Mayo, 23 mos., and Lexie Mayo, 3 mos. Phyl and her family are very grateful to Elim Park, ALSA aides, Hospice, Opal Stork Home Care, and all her friends for the love and support during these last years of her life.
A Celebration of Life will be held at Elim Park Place's Nelson Hall on Sunday, July 16th at 1 p.m. with a reception immediately following. Phyl loved colorful clothes-Please wear them! In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to the Girl Scouts of Connecticut ( gsofct.org ), the Alzheimer's Association ( alz.org ), or Save the Sound ( savethesound.org ).