Phyllis Nadine Hall Trent

Phyllis H. Trent, 96, departed this life on March 24, 2025. Born Phyllis Nadine Hall to parents John Greek Hall and Nettie Walters Hall on June 18, 1928, Phyllis was raised in Wytheville, Virginia. The family later moved to Radford, Virginia, where Phyllis attended Radford College. She also studied at National Business College in Roanoke. Phyllis was a proud lifetime member of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority. 

Phyllis married Charles F. Trent on February 24, 1951. Their long union was blessed by daughters Cindy and Karen and later by four grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

After marriage, Phyllis and Charles lived in various cities in the south, including six memorable years in Brookhaven, Mississippi, before returning home to Virginia in 1962 and settling in Roanoke, where Charles was the operations manager for the local Sealtest (later Valley Rich) Dairy. In Roanoke, Phyllis and Charles built a home on Longhorn Road where they raised a family, welcomed grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and lived for 55 years. 

Phyllis touched the lives of many in the Roanoke Valley and beyond as an example of courage and determination in the face of adversity after a tragic car accident in 1965 left her permanently blinded. She credited rehabilitation at the Greater Pittsburg Guild for the Blind for helping her to recover her independence after the accident. At a time when blindness was widely considered totally debilitating, Phyllis learned to navigate the world without sight. She learned braille, moved through familiar spaces independently, and developed her own unique systems for household management. Her remarkable recovery was documented in the pages of The Roanoke Times. Over the next six decades, Phyllis helped many to think differently about the capabilities of people with disabilities. Her husband Charles always emphasized that "Phyllis ran the show." From 1972-1999, Phyllis and Charles owned and operated a home nursing registry, Eldercare, with close friends Joe and Grace Myers. Phyllis and Joe, who had also lost his sight, managed the nursing placements by telephone. For many years, Phyllis bowled in a league for the blind and visually impaired, participating in tournaments across the United States. Phyllis had enjoyed dancing since her years at Radford College and she and Charles were regulars in Roanoke's ballroom dancing circuit. Phyllis had a special love of music, especially the "big band" ensembles of the 1940s and the music of Elvis.

Phyllis and Charles enjoyed travel and in retirement they crisscrossed the country with friends by bus and car and made trips abroad to Mexico, the Caribbean, and even cruised the Panama Canal. A highlight for Phyllis was a memorable family trip to Bermuda in 2002. Closer to home, Phyllis and Charles invited three generations of family, as well as many friends, to spend time with them at the little A-frame home they constructed adjacent to Gordon Trent Golf Course and to the Trent family farm and homeplace near Spencer, Virginia. 

Throughout her life, Phyllis was sustained by a deep and abiding faith. A member of Windsor Hills United Methodist Church for over 60 years, Phyllis knew the verses to all the old gospel hymns by heart. She drew great strength from her family, especially her two daughters, and had a special connection to her four grandchildren for whom she was a great source of encouragement and support. 

Phyllis was preceded in death by her devoted husband of 67 years, Charles F. Trent. She is survived by her brother, Garnet Hall; daughters, Cindy Trent Markwell and husband, Scott, and Karen Trent Shelton and husband, Tim; grandchildren, Austyn Swisher and husband, Tim, Joel Shelton, Monica Markwell, Derek Shelton and wife, Catherine; great-grandchildren, Brett, Braden, Kayleigh, Dylan, Landon, and Elijah; and many nieces and nephews.

Phyllis' family is deeply appreciative of the support they have received over the years from friends, caregivers, and strangers alike. Thanks especially to Dr. Michael Malpass, Eva Taylor, Mary Ann Swisher, Shirley Biggs, Tanya McGuire, and Betty Hairston, and to the dedicated staff at The Hermitage and Good Samaritan Hospice in Roanoke. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Phyllis' memory to VisAbility Pittsburgh (formerly Greater Pittsburgh Guild for the Blind, www.visability.org). 

A graveside service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 30 at the Griggs-Trent family cemetery in Patrick County, VA.