Phyllis
While Phyllis was not interviewed, she was mentioned in several other interviews, a testament to how much of an impact she left on her community.
Excerpt from a Conversation Between Kathy Leahy and Trish Smith, August 2016:
Kathy Leahy: Phyllis was our first one who moved. Phyllis was 80 and when she moved it kind of rocked everyone a little bit because Phyllis sat…I don’t know if you saw… I should have had him take a picture of that chair out front that has the duct tape around it. Is it still out there?
Trish Smith: I think it is.
Kathy Leahy: …because that was Phyllis’s chair. Her own chair. And she put it out there and she sat there every single day.
Trish Smith: She sure did.
Kathy Leahy: And to come into this building and see that chair empty every day kind of really rocked some people.
Trish Smith: It did.
Kathy Leahy: You know, even though they know she’s gone, they’re still expecting her to maybe come back.
Cassandra Holden: Has she visited since she moved?
Kathy Leahy: She came once. But you know, it’s a bit of a walk [from her new apartment] and it’s a bit exhausting. And, as I understand, according to Trish, she’s got a new friend over there so she’s quite happy. She’s able to sit outside…and she loves to sit outside. She’s able to see other people coming and going…and she has a very close friend her own age and the two of them sit together. It’s wonderful.
Phyllis’ Chair Excerpts:
Paul Shoul, February 2018:
When I photographed the demolition of Northampton Lodging, I noticed a chair covered with duct tape by the front entrance. It had a presence.
I imagined every conversation it had witnessed. As the machines dug into the building, I started to root for its survival. Walls, wood, metal beams, and bricks came crashing down around it. At the end of the day, it stood, untouched. It had not moved a single inch.
Jim Moynihan, February 2018:
People used to go sit out in her chair. Her chair out there. If they were sitting in her chair when she went out there, the cane came out. Move it or lose it! It’s like, “Whoa, okay!” Nobody messed with her. We always took care of her. If anybody gave her shit, we gave it right back to them.