Philip Nolan

Of Waupaca, age 78, passed away at home on Tuesday, August 27, 2019.  He was born on August 11, 1941 to the late Dr. Philip and Charlotte (Peterson) Nolan. Beloved husband of Annette Reid Nolan, father of Kisten Devine Nolan and Verdant (Philip Ravia Reid) Nolan. Grandfather of Nicholas Philip Laughton,  Koko (Kisten Leslie) Nolan, Thea Day Atkins, Kendall Brinkley Laughton. Uncle to many beloved nieces and nephews. In addition to his parents he was preceded in death by his brother Peter Edward Nolan.

Phil was born in Appleton, WI and raised primarily in Bronxville, NY. He graduated from Antioch College with a BA in Philosophy and in college years pursued diverse interests. Post Antioch, he moved to Birmingham, AL to study Anatomy and Physiology at University of Alabama where – among other jobs -  he was responsible for training medical students in the anatomy lab. He met his wife in Birmingham; where they participated in the civil rights movement together and then married. They moved to Chicago, IL in 1966 and he earned his Masters in Public Health from University of Illinois at Chicago. His adult career focused on advocating for at risk populations throughout the Chicagoland area. He coordinated after-care services for at risk youth in Chicago’s West Side, was a mental health administrator at Madden Mental Health Center and a nursing home administrator for a publicly funded nursing home housing developmentally disabled older adults.  On the side, he was a jazz enthusiast, Sanskrit student, chef, yoga and meditation master, theater lover, political activist, photographer, joker, raconteur, swimmer, environmentalist, Democrat, poet, clarinetist, public health conference presenter not to mention inventor. He invented the Aquasight dive mask system in 1991; his latest collaborative concept (patent pending) reduces/recycles industrial CO2 emissions. He died peacefully in his Waupaca, WI family home – as he wished – with the wind at his back – and his wife at his side.

A celebration of life is planned for September 7, 2019 at The Maple Crest Funeral Home of Waupaca, from 4:30 p.m. until 7 p.m. All are welcome. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to an organization dear to his heart, Habitat for Humanity and/or Planned Parenthood.

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