Former Sisters resident loses home to hurricane

Many in Sisters will remember Phyllis Yankey, who lived in the community for a number of years. Phyllis Yankey’s husband, Mike, an Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) employee, was killed in an accident at the ODOT yard at the Santiam Junction in 2009. In 2020 Phyllis left Sisters to be closer to her children.

On July 8, Hurricane Beryl ripped through her current neighborhood in Conroe, Texas, a tree fell and destroyed her home.

In a GoFundMe narrative, her son Chris reported that, “because of some now heartbreaking issues with the insurance companies, her home was not covered and she will receive no reimbursement, making the home a total loss. Her life savings have now been destroyed. She has lost everything and won’t be able to recover from this event financially without our help.”

A GoFundMe fundraiser has been established at http://www.gofundme.com/f/help-phyllis-yankey-after-hurricane-beryl-destroyed-her-home.

Chris Yankey wrote, “Since my dad passed away, she has been comforting other women dealing with the loss of husbands and loved ones.

“In 2016, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. But not even that slowed her down for long. She got back to work immediately leading women’s ministry at VAST Church in Sisters, Oregon. Living just down the street from the house where she lived with my dad when he died, God was using her to bring life into that town and touch the lives of the women in that town.

“She is truly a remarkable woman and she needs all of us right now.”