Philip Clyde Koontz
1948 - 2021
Philip Clyde Koontz, age 72, died
suddenly May 13, 2021 at his home in Newton. Phil was born in
Beatrice, Neb on June 30, 1948 to Rev Elbert and Ruth Schroeder
Koontz. He graduated from the Hillsboro public schools and Bethel
College. He married Sondra Kay Bandy in Hesston on September 4, 1970.
They celebrated 50 years together in 2020.
At age 16, Phil was baptized in the
Mennonite Church by his father. He became a faithful member of the
Bethel College Mennonite Church where he served as a member of the
worship and trustee commissions.
Throughout high school and college,
Phil and his brothers ran a custom combine crew. Phil was the crew's
mechanic. This business enabled Phil to graduate debt free from
college. He was always astounded at the trust his father placed in
three young men.
Phil was employed at Price Bros
Equipment, Wichita, for 40 years where he worked on industrial
equipment. He loved a mechanical problem and was known at work and in
the family for his strong work ethic and his ability to fix anything.
He retired in 2012.
Music was one of Phil's passions. While
in college, he sang with Bethel's madrigals, concert choir, and male
quartet. At church he sang in the chancel choir and played in the
bell choir. He was a choir and board member of the Newton Chorale,
and for more than 40 years, he sang in the Wichita Symphony Chorus.
Another passion was cars. While the
family lost count of the number of cars Phil owned, Phil did not. He
could recite details about every one of them and all the cars he saw
on the road. Phil loved to read history, memoirs, and biographies. He
enjoyed traveling, and with Sondra toured 17 foreign countries and
all but two of the fifty states. Give him a map to look at and he was
busy for hours.
Phil was a man of integrity, honesty,
and kindness, a gentle man of subtle humor, reserved until he knew
you well, and always curious about how things worked.
Phil is survived by his beloved wife
Sondra Bandy Koontz, two brothers: Theodore (Gayle) of Goshen, IN and
Richard (Barbara) of North Newton, 1 niece and 4 nephews, and ten
great nieces and nephews with another on the way. He treasured these
family relationships and his many friends.
Public visitation (no family present)
at the funeral home from 3 – 8 p.m., May 19. A limited seating
memorial service will be held Thursday, May 20, at 1:30 p.m. at the
Bethel College Mennonite Church, North Newton. A public graveside
service in Greenwood Cemetery follows at 3 p.m. Memorials may be sent
to the Bethel College Music Department or the Bethel College
Mennonite Church in care of Petersen Funeral Home, 215 N. Main,
Newton, KS 67114.
https://bethelcollegemennonitechurch.org/
for livestream information
