Leadership lessons of Rev. Phyllis Marsh.
Remembering a brilliant grassroots mentor, organizer and friend
I am going to miss Rev. Mother Phyllis Marsh – a lot. The rector of St. Philip’s African Orthodox Church in Whitney Pier died on June 6 at the age of 73. She was a cherished friend and a great teacher.
Actually, our whole community will feel Rev. Phyllis’s absence. Cape Breton desperately needs leaders like her: patient and determined; loving and frank; smart and humble; intellectual and practical. In many ways, Rev. Phyllis was a pastor to everyone – a wise grassroots leader who saw the dignity of all people.
Rev. Phyllis served in leadership roles with many organizations, including the Health Association of African Canadians and the Ally Centre, among many others. She championed inter-cultural and inter-faith projects to eliminate poverty, hunger and despair, the subject of our last exchange of e-mails, three days before she passed away.
She was a frequent guest in my classes and a wonderful resource person to many of my students – sometimes even joining them for neighbourhood study walks.
Rev. Phyllis saw a community like a jigsaw puzzle. Leadership, she believed, is about putting the puzzle together while appreciating the beauty of each piece.
Born on the Nova Scotia mainland, Rev. Phyllis was adopted into a family in Whitney Pier. One of her earliest memories was of her father, Eleazer, a kind-hearted entrepreneur originally from Barbados, distributing food from his store to people in need.
There were tough jolts, too: She spoke publicly about her adopted mother’s mental illness. There were also some traumatic events in her youth.
Rev. Phyllis remembered gradually overcoming anger and insecurity as a young person (“I had a sharp tongue”), though peers from her youth recall an inspiring and generous person.
Rev. Phyllis worked in Toronto and Halifax for 42 years. Among her occupations was heading an agency to support mothers whose children were temporarily removed by childwelfare authorities. She wanted these moms to get a fresh start with their families and the support they need.
Meeting her biological mother at age 58 was life-changing for Rev. Phyllis, even though the two women only had a few years to get to know each other.
UNEXPECTED RETURN
Rev. Phyllis hadn’t expected to be back in the Pier, nor to be Patriarch Vincent Waterman’s successor in ministry. She was ordained at age 67.
And she was excellent in that ministry. Never, ever did Rev. Phyllis have a “50-foot stare” as some leaders do. In other words, when she was with you, she cared only about you. If there were dignitaries around or politicians calling, they would have to wait.
And if you were lonely, if you were struggling in school, if you were living with addictions or just out of prison, if you were a Cape Breton University student living in a decrepit rental room, Rev. Phyllis cared about you.
At the same time, she was an effective and fearless advocate: I directly witnessed her in meetings with the heads of major institutions. Once in the room, Rev. Phyllis carefully took time to study these other leaders. Eventually, she would intervene with a gentle but methodical and pointed examination, followed by data, examples and case studies. She would prompt these other leaders to realize what they need to do.
Rev. Phyllis was very inclusive. She loved people unconditionally – people of all faiths and people with no faith affiliation. But she believed that tapping into the Holy Spirit (broadly understood) is important in setting the right priorities and building transformative leadership.
During the pandemic, families and elders who were receiving food hampers at their door had no idea that Rev. Phyllis had arranged it, nor did she want the credit. Her deep, caring faith contributed to that kind of steady, mature leadership.
When recent illnesses forced Rev. Phyllis into surgeries, rehabilitation and even an amputation, she didn’t show the pain. She was on her cell phone in the hospital rooms at every possible moment – checking on congregants, organizing projects, making sure that people in the neighbourhood were okay.
Over the past several months, she was working mostly from her home, hardly missing any beats.
And so her death at home last week was unexpected. Her family and friends did not have a chance to say good-bye.
Thank you, Rev. Phyllis. I hope and pray that we will continue your blessed work.