Phyllis M. Kannowski

Phyllis M. Kannowski, 87, Grand Forks,  died December 18, 2020 in Altru Hospital, Grand Forks.

Phyllis Inez Mosher was born on July 17, 1933 at Valley City, North Dakota, the daughter of Maurice E. and Inez Louise Hogie Mosher.  Her father owned a service station in Cooperstown, North Dakota.

She graduated from Cooperstown High School in 1951 and attended the University of North Dakota.  She married Paul B. Kannowski on April 6, 1953 in Trinity Lutheran Church at Cooperstown, and they moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan where Paul was a graduate student at the University of Michigan.  After completing his graduate work, they moved to Bowling Green, Ohio, where Paul was on the faculty of Bowling Green State University.  In 1957 they moved to Grand Forks where Paul joined the faculty of the University of North Dakota. 

While living in Grand Forks, Phyllis worked briefly for the University of North Dakota and was active as an election worker.  She belonged to Chapter AO of P.E.O. and served as the President of the North Dakota Chapter of P.E.O.  She also served as the President of the United Hospital Auxiliary and as a member of the YWCA Board of Directors.  An opera buff, she and her husband were guarantors of the Metropolitan Opera Program in Minneapolis.  She served for several years as the Director of the Metropolitan Opera Auditions in North Dakota.  She was a long-time member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. 

After the flood of 1997, she and her husband moved to Corpus Christi, Texas.  They lived there for 15 years, returning to Grand Forks in 2012.  While in Corpus Christi, Phyllis was active in P.E.O., the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Mayflower Society.  She volunteered for many years at the Christus Spohn Hospital. 

She is survived by two children, Katherine Ann (William) Sommers, Apple Valley, Minnesota, and Mark Allan (Carol) Kannowski of Mooresville, Indiana; six grandchildren, Ryan, Noah, and Brandon Sommers, and Benjamin Steele, Maggie Rogers, and Katie Steele-Kannowski;  a sister, Janice (Ronald) Kloster, of Fargo, North Dakota.    She was preceded in death by her husband, Paul. 

Memorial Services will be at a later date.