On Thursday, May 16, 2024, our esteemed colleague and teacher Jeff Phillips passed away. This tragic event happened very quickly and completely unexpectedly for all of us. We are deeply shocked and very sad to have lost one of our kindest and most long-standing members of the Department for English and American Studies. We will never forget Jeff Phillip’s friendliness, good humour and enthusiasm, and how much he cared about teaching his students. We will miss his booming voice and his boisterous laugh.
Below you have the opportunity to share your own memories about Jeff Philipps and to express your condolences to his family and friends.
Department for English and American Studies
TU Chemnitz
Sehr geehrte Kollegen und Freunde von Jeff Phillips,
ich möchte mein tiefstes Beileid an alle ausdrücken, die Jeff nahe standen. Er war ein großartiger Lehrer und Kollege, der
uns allen viel gegeben hat. Ich werde mich immer an seine Freundlichkeit,
seinen Humor und seine Leidenschaft für die Lehre erinnern. Er wird sehr vermisst werden.
Mit herzlichen Grüßen,
Ngan
We will remember Jeff as a friendly, positive and open-minded colleague as well as a dedicated, motivated and motivating teacher.
Our heart-felt sympathy to all who knew Jeff, particularly his family and friends.
I was saddened to learn of Jeff’s passing. He was a dear colleague during my time in Chemnitz, a font of stories, a generous soul. That he will never get to retire back home and fulfil the plans of which he spoke so often fills me with sadness.
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. Requiescat in pace.
Am Zentrum für Fremdsprachen haben wir Jeff Phillips als überaus freundlichen, professionellen und wertschätzenden Kollegen wahrgenommen. Auch wenn unsere Zusammenarbeit nur organisatorischer Natur war, als Weg- und Ganggefährte in unseren Kursräumen hatte er immer ein freundliches Wort auf den Lippen.
Noch kurz vor seiner OP rief er uns an, wir sollten uns keine Sorgen machen, er sei jetzt für zwei, max. drei Wochen nicht verfügbar, da er einen geplanten OP-Termin hat. Er scherzte noch und sagte, wir sollen die Kursräume auf gar keinen Fall an jemand anderen vergeben – jetzt müssen wir es! Aus immer noch unfassbaren und traurigen Gründen.
Jeff Phillips wird immer Teil unserer Erinnerungen sein.
Wir möchten allen Angehörigen unser herzlichstes Beileid aussprechen und wünschen viel Kraft bei der Verarbeitung des schweren Verlustes.
Dear Mr. Phillips,
You have been part of my studies since the beginning or shall I say, I´ve been one of your hundreds of students during the past 5 years. Over time, I realized what a great impact you had on my life by not only teaching me about the English language itself, but also adding your own life stories and lessons to each session. As a future English teacher myself, you´ve set a memorable example for me to look up to and think of which person I´d like to become as an English teacher or teacher in general in the future. It was your way of speaking to your students, your musicality but most of all your laughter and joy you brought to your classes that got stuck with me over the years. English days quickly turned out to be my absolute favorite days of the entire week. I´m not joking! I was literary waiting for the Mondays or Tuesdays to come to widen my English knowledge as well as the view on today´s world. When you were making your way to the classroom, your appearance reminded me of a king coming through the door with your black coat and a carry-on full of knowledge. I know that you would have never called yourself a king, but this is just the way I felt about you. You were the person that turned the world into a better place by simply caring about each and everyone of us no matter where he or she was coming from and what kind of personal background they had. You´ve been the person who allowed me to get an insight into the English language, I´ve never had before. Out of a sudden, grammar actually made sense, pronunciation became possible to improve and vocabulary was relatively easy to remember. Apart from the language skills, you have had enriched your lessons with so many interesting cultural facts and made people curious to spend some time abroad themselves. I took this message by heart and traveled the world for studies and internships abroad. I guess, if there was one person in the world who knew the value of widen one´s own horizon by stepping out of one´s comfort zone and starting an adventure of a lifetime through traveling like this, it would have definitely been you.
Thank you so much for having been such a great role model for me and all the other students over multiple years. Thank you for having taken all your time and care to listen to your students and answering all our questions. Thank you so much for all your friendly and joyful “Hello´s” around campus and the smiles you gave everyone around you. It has always made my day. I am certain that even if you won´t be standing in front of your students anymore, your presence is still felt around your former classes and across university. Your life lessons will be passed on to the next generations of university students. You´ll never be forgotten! Thank you so much to your family and friends to support you to become the person I got to know. Professors and teachers more or less shape their students by leaving a lasting impression. Mr. Phillips, you´ve helped me to become the person who I am today as well as the view I have on the (English speaking) world. I am very thankful for the chance to have had many English classes with you during my studies. I promise, I try to do everything I can to be a positive role model for my own students in the future like you were to me.
Thank you!
Leider war ich nie in Chemnitz. Aber ich weiß, dass Jeff seinen Job dort liebte, die Studenten, die Kollegen, besonders die Kollegin Isabelle. Er liebte den Blick in den grünen Innenhof von seiner Wohnung aus. Er interessierte sich für die Stadt genauso wie für Weltpolitik. Mir war er Jahrzehnte ein zugewandter, verlässlicher Freund. Wir tauschten Alltägliches aus. Mindestens einmal pro Woche. Er unterschrieb immer mit „Big Hugs Jeff“. Big Hugs, lieber Jeff, ich werde dich sehr vermissen. Ich vermisse dich schon jetzt. Und ich trauere mit deiner Schwester und allen deinen Freundinnen und Freunden.
I graduated quite a while back. However, I fondly remember my lesson with Mr Phillips. He had his heart at the right place. I habe learned incredibly much when it comes to the English language and other possible events of life that may or may not happen.
With his friendly, yet determined demeanour he has taught me to always have a back-up at the ready when it comes to teaching. I quote: „Ladies and gentlemen, you need a plan A, plan B and plan C- you never know!“ Thank you Jeff Phillips for all your constructive feedback and all the fun lessons.
My deepest sympathies are with his family, friends and the ones.
Immer einen lustigen Spruch auf den Lippen, pure Ehrlichkeit und Freude am Lehren- das und noch viel mehr zeigte Mr. Philipps jede Woche aufs Neue in seinen Englisch-Seminaren. Mit Leichtigkeit geleitete er uns durch Pronounciation classes, endlose Vokabellisten und Grammatik. Er war ein wahres Unikat und wird mir als einer der besten und eindrucksvollsten Dozenten, die ich an der Uni kennenlernen durfte, in Erinnerung bleiben. Vielen Dank für alles, was Sie mir und all den anderen mit auf den Weg gegeben haben! Ruhen Sie in Frieden! Der Familie und den Freunden möchte ich hiermit mein herzlichstes Beileid ausdrücken und wünsche Ihnen viel Kraft für die Zukunft!
It was an absolute pleasure to have met Jeff, a fellow American in Chemnitz, when I was doing my master’s degree in Chemnitz. I always enjoyed our fun and humorous conversations. You will be greatly missed.
I’d like to extend my deepest sympathies to Jeff’s family and friends.
Jeff Phillips, ich will nicht trauern, dass Sie gegangen sind, ich möchte danken, dass ich Sie kennen lernen durfte.
Ebenso im Namen meiner Tochter, Julia Pampel, die Sie auch als wertvollen Menschen – immer mit einem Lachen – kennen gelernt hat.
Wir sprechen hiermit unser Beileid an seine Familie und Freunde aus. RIP Mr Phillips.
The Liberal Arts flag does not fly any more.
Jeff Phillips came to Chemnitz with teaching experience as a “Lektor” from Hannover and Kassel.
For over 20 years, he taught generations of students at the English Department.
With his high teaching load, he contributed to the success of our students more than anyone else in the Department.
His students will remember him as a traditional strict and open teacher, who was always keen to maintain international standards, an institution within the institution.
His colleagues will remember him as the Liberal Arts man from the (US-American) South.
During his long experience at German universities, he remained a dedicated observer of political and cultural changes in the US – and always interesting to talk to.
The big bass baritone was devoted to the opera in all its forms, and he proved to be an expert and keen follower of developments in music and the arts.
We appreciated his contributions to staff meetings or “Heizhaus” conferences – he always enjoyed talking informally to students as well as international guest professors.
We will miss the stimulating discussions with him about his American heritage and family background in Georgia.
We are so sad that we will never hear from him how he managed to reintegrate into his old home after his retirement.
The English Department has lost a dear friend and colleague:
Jeff Phillips passed away on May 16th in Chemnitz – R.I.P.
I’ve only known Mr Phillips since last semester, but he quickly became one of my favourite lecturers. He taught with so much joy and always had an interesting anecdote to tell. His lectures were the ones I looked forward to the most. He will be greatly missed. My deepest condolences go to his family and friends.
I only knew Mr. Phillips for a few months, a time way too short to spend with such a great man and teacher. His teaching methods were one of a kind and even made grammar a fun topic. The little stories and anecdotes he often told could lighten the mood in an instant and helped understand even the most difficult topics. His optimistic view on the world has always impressed me and will leave an imprint on my heart forever.
My condolences go to his family and friends. He will be greatly missed and always remembered.
Mr. Phillips has been one of the most magnificent English teachers in my life!
Thank You, Mr. Phillips for all you have done for me.
Mr. Phillips has had amazing abilities when it came to teaching English to his students (he even explained us how to properly apply the English comma-rules for writing our essays) Chapeau!
I‘ll always remember him as being a stunning person, being interested in arts and the opera. And: always caring about his students!
God bless you Sir!
My deepest sympathies are with his family, friends and the ones who loved him.
I only had a couple of lessons with Mr. Phillips, but he was one of the kindest, funniest and best teachers out there. His lessons were never boring and always funny but informative.
I aspire to become a teacher like Mr. Phillips, respectable and kind.
May he rest in peace.
Mr. Phillips war ein sehr unterhaltsamer und zu gleich professioneller Dozent dessen Kurse ich gerne besuchte. Dort herrschte immer ein angenehmes Lernklima weswegen es auch nie langweilig wurde, da jeder dazu motiviert war, aktiv mitzuarbeiten. Egal, um welche Veranstaltung es sich handelte, ich wusste, dass ich diese nicht nur mit neuem Wissen, sondern auch einer neuen Weisheit oder Geschichte von Mr. Phillips verlassen würde. Er wird mir als ein Lehrer in Erinnerung bleiben, der sich stets um das Wohl seiner Schüler bemühte.
May he rest in peace. I express my most sincere condolences to his family and friends.
Jeff Phillips bleibt mir als engagierter Dozent in Erinnerung, der jeden mit Respekt und Anerkennung behandelt hat und stets den Erfolg seiner Studierenden priorisiert hat. Auch außerhalb seiner Lehrveranstaltungen war es immer eine Freude ihm zu begegnen, weil er stets ein paar nette Worte bereit hielt und sich freute, wenn er mit kleinen oder etwas größeren Gefallen helfen konnte.
Rest in peace, dear Jeff! You will be missed.
I knew Jeff as a teacher and, later, as a colleague. His passion for languages was contagious, his enthusiasm for teaching inspiring. Over the years, I have listened to his countless stories and to him reasoning with the feisty photocopier next door. It is hard to imagine the department without his presence and his laughter, without the sound of his trolley case in the corridor. He will be missed and remembered by his students and coworkers – both past and present. My deepest and sincerest condolences to his family and friends. Rest in peace, Jeff, and I hope you’ll always have a cool drink at hand.
Mr Phillips will always live in my memory. I was an Exchange student at TUC for the winter semester 2023/24 and I attended his course with passion and enthusiasm. He was the kindest, funniest, most genuine human being I’ve ever met. He was a warrior, one of the bravest. I remember him walking to the
Mensa every day to get his lunch and even though he visibly
struggled he kept on going, he was such an example to me, we don’t
have to stop in front of hard times.
Always look forward.
I send all my thoughts to Mr. Phillips family and friends, may he rest in
peace and may you find peace as well, light always finds its way through darkness.
Love from Italy
Veranstaltung mit Dr. Phillips waren immer das richtige Maß an lernen und auch immer mal Spaß haben, sei es seine anekdote oder fun facts mit denen er gerne seine Studierenden auf sich aufmerksam gemacht hat.
Persönlich wird er mir auch immer in Erinnerung bleiben als der erste Englischlehrer seit fast 10 Jahren der mich auf einen Fehler in meiner Aussprache hingewiesen hat.
Ich bedaure sehr von seinem Tod zu hören und richte mein Beileid an seine Famile und Freunde
Mr. Phillips war der einzige Dozent, der mich mit seinem Humor und seiner Art dazu gebracht hat, immer seine Kurse besuchen zu wollen. Auch wenn ich schon lange nicht mehr an der Universität bin, hat sich eine Hommage an ihn bei mir und meinem Mann im Alltag etabliert. Seit ich meine Cola am liebsten mit sehr vielen Eiswürfeln trinke, nennen wir sie „Mr. Phillips“, denn wenn man sich länger mit ihm unterhielt, wusste man genau, dass die Deutschen „überhaupt keine Ahnung haben, wie man eine Cola richtig trinkt“. Auch lange nachdem ich nicht mehr an der Universität war, grüßte er mich immer auf der Straße, erzählte aus seinem Leben und machte Witze. Er fragte immer interessiert, wie man sich entwickelt. Ich bin dankbar, einen solchen Professor getroffen zu haben und werde mich immer an den Menschen erinnern, der er war. Ich spreche seiner Familie und seinen Freunden mein aufrichtiges Beileid aus.
Jeff Phillips will be remembered as someone who had a very amusing way of telling stories in class. He was always willing to listen to his students, interested in their studies, engaging in conversations before, in and after class and was one of the fairest lecturers.
In conversations with people who have graduated years ago, his name was always one of the first to be mentioned which shows that he left a positive lasting impression during his time at TU Chemnitz.
I will always have his lecturing in mind when I might be close to swearing in front of students or children. I have learnt a lot from him, both regarding my general English skills as well as personally.
Rest in peace!
My sincere condolences to his family and friends.
I only knew Jeff Phillips for a few months, a time way too short to spend with such a great man and teacher. His teaching methods were one of a kind and even made grammar a fun topic. The little stories and anecdotes he often told could lighten the mood in an instant and helped understand even the most difficult topics. His optimistic view on the world has always impressed me and will leave an imprint on my heart forever.
My condolences go to his family and friends. He will be greatly missed and always remembered.
Mr. Phillips wird mir als ein strikter, professioneller und zugleich witziger Dozent in Erinnerung bleiben. Er begegnete jedem stets mit Respekt und bereicherte den Unterricht oft mit humorvollen Anekdoten aus seinem Leben. Das Wohl seiner Studierenden und Kollegen lag ihm stets am Herzen, was er durch kleine Gesten zeigte.
Rest in Peace
Mr. Phillips war ein Mensch, an den ich mich für immer erinnern werde. Seine Anekdoten und Lebensweisheiten werden bis heute gerne von vielen seiner Studenten zitiert und mit dem Schalk im Gesicht in Erinnerung gerufen.
Als einschlägiges Erinnerung bleibt mir der Verlust seines geliebten „Beach Cup“ in Erinnerung, der nach jahrelanger Nutzung dem Verschleiß erlag.
Mr. Phillips beklagte den Verlust so vehement, dass sich unser Kurs zur Mission machte, die 1/2 Gallon per Import für ihn zu rehabilitieren – schließlich gehörte die Mischung des eisgekühlten Getränkes zur Eröffnung jeder Stunde.
Ich hatte in meiner studentischen Laufbahn jede Menge Spaß mit Mr. Phillips und danke ihm für sein Engagement.
Ich wünsche den Hinterbliebender viel Kraft und alles Gute für die Zukunft.
Mr. Phillips was a wonderful teacher who always brought a sprinkling of humor and a lot of warmth to each lesson. He was kind to his students and more than generous in passing along his knowledge. Beyond that, he always had a smile ready for the students he passed in the hallways. I remember how amusing he found it when I used the phrase “I have issues” because it made it so obvious I grew up in California. His laugh was contagious.
I’m thinking of and praying for his family in this difficult time. I know he’ll be sorely missed at TU Chemnitz.
I’ve only known Mr. Phillips since last semester, but he quickly became one of my favourite lecturers. He taught with so much joy and always had an interesting anecdote to tell. His lectures were the ones I looked forward to the most. He will be greatly missed. My deepest condolences go to his family and friends.
Jeff Phillips war ein sehr authentischer, lustiger und lieber Dozent. Ich habe seine Veranstaltungen gern besucht, weil man von ihm viel lernen konnte und er das Ganze sehr persönlich gestaltet hat. Ich erinnere mich besonders an eine Situation vor einer mündlichen Englischprüfung. Ich war sehr aufgeregt, aber Mr. Phillips war so entspannt und machte Witze, wodurch ich mich auch entspannen konnte und die Prüfung sehr angenehm war. Mein Beileid gilt seiner Familie und seinen Freunden.