GULFPORT — Mrs. Lynnette Neely Phillips, age 67, of Gulfport, died Sunday, Feb. 8, 2009, in Gulfport after an extended battle with multiple sclerosis.

Mrs. Phillips was a native of Miniola, Texas. She attended the University of Mississippi and Mississippi College, where she graduated with honors and a degree in English. She had been a resident of Gulfport since 1962 and taught at Phillips College-Gulfport.

She was a member of First Baptist Church in Gulfport and was a former member of Woodglen and Bayou View Garden Clubs, a member of Gulfport Junior Auxiliary and had been active in the Tri-Delta Gulf Coast chapter.

Mrs. Phillips is survived by her husband, Gerald C. Phillips of Gulfport; her daughters, Tara Beth Phillips Pavlakovich and her husband, Nick, of Denver, Colo., Paige Michele Phillips St. Thomas and her husband, Craig, of Annapolis, Md., and Courtney Lynnette Phillips Partridge and her husband, Dave, of Scottsdale, Ariz.; her son, Trent Caldwell Phillips of Biloxi; her brothers, Joel Neely of Baton Rouge and Marcus Neely of Gulfport; and her eight grandchildren, David, Anna, Michael and Nicholas Pavlakovich, Alex and Sarah St. Thomas, and Mackenzie and Tatum Partridge.

A visitation will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2009, from 11 a.m. until noon at Bradford-O’Keefe Funeral Home, 15th Street in Gulfport. There will be an 11 a.m. graveside service on Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2009, at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Vicksburg.

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations to Mississippi Children’s Home Services (orphanage), P.O. Box 1078, Jackson, MS 39215.