Phyllis J. Owens, 81, formerly of Mendota, died July 1, 2008, in Pleasant View Nursing Home, Ottawa. Services will be at 11 a.m. Thursday in Merritt Funeral Home, Mendota. The Rev. Michael Morrell will officiate. Burial will be at Wyoming Cemetery, Paw Paw. Visitation will be from 10 a.m. until 11 a.m. services Thursday at the funeral home. Mrs. Owens was born Oct. 23, 1926, in Paw Paw to Jake and Hazel (Rush) Jacobs. She married Lowell Owens on Feb. 14, 1947, in Ottawa. She was an Avon salesperson and a hairdresser. She owned and operated Boot's Beauty Box and The Wheel of Beauty. Survivors are one son, Gary (Peggy) Owens of Girard; four grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; one brother, Merle "Rusty" (Jo) of Lafayette, Ind.; two sisters, Lois "Toots" (Oral) Ridge and Joanne Eichorn, both of Mendota; and nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband on Jan. 24, 2000; one son, Perry; and seven brothers and sisters. Memorials may be directed to American Diabetes Association.