Lessie Evelyn Werner

Lessie Evelyn Phillips Werner, 103, died August 9, 2025 at her home in Oak Ridge amidst cherished friends.

Lessie Evelyn Phillips Werner was born on February 16, 1922 in St. Stephens Parish of Berkeley County, South Carolina to Franklin Philip Phillips and Winnie (Guerry) Phillips. She was the oldest of three children and grew up on her family farm where her mother also ran a local store. She was the first in her family to graduate from Macedonia High School and won a 4-H trip to Chicago in 1941. With the help of scholarships, Lessie was part of the '44 graduating class of Winthrop College (Rockhill, SC), graduating with a BS degree. She was one of the very few of her large extended family members to leave South Carolina, having joined the Manhattan Project workforce in the secret city of Oak Ridge TN two weeks after graduating college to help with a secret war project. There she met her husband of 69 years, George Knoll Werner. They were married on September 28, 1946 and lived most of their married life in Oak Ridge, except for a year in Chicago in 1946. A daughter, Helen, and a son, Roger, were born in the 1950s.

Lessie worked at the Oak Ridge Y-12 plant for two years before she married and also taught 7th grade science in Harriman for a year. She was a stay-at-home mom after the children were born and enjoyed massaging recipes until they were her own, or embellishing the children's curtains with painted storybook characters. She made most of Helen's clothes and later taught her to sew. She made slip covers, draperies, any necessary costumes, and later embraced quilting and became quite a good hand stitcher. Lessie was a Girl Scout leader for several years, organizing cookouts, campouts, and badge preparation for a Pine Valley troop.

Lessie also enjoyed flower arranging and was quite active in the Arissa Garden Club as well as being an ardent supporter, along with George, of the UT Arboretum. - In her off-time Lessie volunteered for 30 years with the support group Contact. She was a lover of beautiful plants, birds, and most mammals (except for squirrels who raided the bird feeder), and she was able to transform the empty back yard into an ordered woodland. She was an avid quilter for about 30 years until George's illness, and belonged to the Smokey Mountain Quilt Guild, starting and administering their borrowing library for eight years. Through her church, United Church, Chapel on the Hill, she was a member of Circle and volunteered for church projects such as flower arrangements, hospitality administration, and many sewing projects. Later Lessie greatly enjoyed taking various ORICL classes and trips.

Lessie is survived by her brother Alton Phillips of Charleston and Bonneau SC; daughter, Helen Boggs (Daryl) of Fort Collins CO; and son, Roger Werner (Holly) of Orlando FL. She was predeceased by her husband, George Werner, parents Franklin and Winnie Phillips, and brother Huey Lee Phillips.

A memorial service will take place in November when family members can be present. Burial was at the Oak Ridge Memorial Cemetery.

The family would also like to thank Care Around the Block who provided Lessie with Care Partners who helped tremendously in her last year, especially her nurse, Dawn Groff.