"Phyllis had quite a fondness for the students," said Director of Dining Services Charlie Thompson. "She really loved the educational atmosphere, and she enjoyed her interaction with the students the most," he said. "She considered herself the possible mother or grandmother figure."
Doris Mason, one of Bray's co-workers, commented on Bray's work ethic. "Phyllis lived for Amherst College, I think," said Mason. "If she missed a day, she was horrified. She was very dedicated to Amherst College. … If you wanted to know anything that was going on, she knew it."
Deborah Omasta-Mokrzecki, manager of dining services and student dining, believes both students and co-workers will greatly miss Bray's presence. "She will be sadly missed by her friends in the dining hall," she said. According to Omasta-Mokrzecki, Bray was an avid reader, especially of romance novels, she liked gambling in casinos, knitting and crocheting, and was heavily involved in the Most Holy Redeemer Church.
Thompson added that Bray worked until the most recent Commencement. During the summer, Bray again showed her commitment to the College by leaving a medical facility with her son and came to the College with her oxygen tank to make sure she would have a job to return to in the fall.
Bray was employed as a health aide at Amherst's Marks Meadow School, according to The Gazette. Bray retired in 1993, and began working at the College later that year.
Bray leaves behind two sons, David Bray of Pelham, Mass. and Donald Bray of Endicott, NY, three brothers, one sister, and several nieces and nephews, according to The Daily Hampshire Gazette. Her husband, Waldo Bray, Jr., died in 1975.