Beloved Navigator elder Phyllis Stanley went to be with her Lord on May 8, 2025, at the age of 85.
Born February 18, 1940, in Brooklyn, New York, Phyllis Elaine Jewitt grew up in a loving home with her parents, two brothers, a cousin, and two grandparents who had immigrated from Norway. Phyllis attended University of Hawaii, where she was crowned Miss University of Hawaii, and later Wheaton College, where she experienced a profound spiritual renewal and began reading the Bible daily.
After college, Phyllis took a job with the United States Congress in Falls Church, Virginia. While working there, she met her future husband, Paul, a West Point cadet with a passion for following Christ and discipling other men. Upon Paul’s graduation from the U.S. Military Academy, the two were married on June 16, 1963.
During their first seven years of marriage, the couple moved frequently while Paul served in the U.S. Army. Their first daughter, Deb, was born while stationed in Schweinfurt, Germany, followed by a son, Paul Jr., while living in Würzburg, Germany. At each new military assignment, Phyllis mentored young women in the community. She and Paul both became increasingly engaged in personal disciplemaking as God stirred their hearts to invest more and more into future leaders. Not long after their return to West Point, where their second son, Scott, was born in 1970, they followed God’s leading to give up a promising West Point teaching career and join staff with The Navigators.
Phyllis and Paul initially worked among students and military officers in the Washington, D.C. area. Following the birth of their second daughter, Kim, in 1973, they were sent to Vienna, Austria, where they pioneered a thriving Navigator ministry in Eastern Europe, a region that was behind the Iron Curtain and closed to missionaries at the time. Four years later, they moved to Bonn, Germany, where Paul directed The Navigators’ rapidly expanding European ministry for the next seven years.
Returning to the United States in 1984 to develop leaders among American staff, the Stanleys joined the International Executive Team in 1990, serving along with then-International President Jerry White. Jerry and his wife, Mary, remember Phyllis fondly:
Phyllis was a master of hospitality, always welcoming people into their home for fellowship. Her famous breadmaking gave an aroma, drawing us all in. Phyllis was constantly discipling and training young women to follow Jesus and to bless their husbands and children. Her graciousness and friendship encouraged us deeply. As part of our early International Executive Team, Paul and Phyllis gave wisdom and stability. They were our pioneers in Eastern Europe and all of Europe. They were dear friends to us.
Former International President Mutua Mahiaini recalls:
Phyllis Stanley influenced the Navigator movement all over the world through her deep walk with the Lord and the outstanding hospitality she practiced. Many international leaders spent time in the Stanley home and came away strengthened for the responsibility assigned to them. God used Phyllis, both through her personal ministry to countless women and in her partnership with her husband, Paul.
Paul and Phyllis later went on to expand disciplemaking influence through work with Greater Europe Mission, the Lausanne Movement, and the formation of the Leader Development Network. Following Paul’s death in 2020, Phyllis continued to serve on staff with Navigators Encore until January 2025.
Widely known for her warmth and her gift for helping people feel valued, Phyllis mentored and encouraged hundreds of young women during her lifetime. An innovative entrepreneur, home builder, and community nurturer, she co-authored the book Celebrate the Seasons (NavPress), co-authored the study “Aspects of Womanhood,” published a cookbook of healthy meals, and owned a successful nutritional baking goods business.
Phyllis is survived by her four children, Deb Stanley, Paul Jr. (Kristin) Stanley, Scott (Shireen) Stanley, Kimberly (Rob) Borchert, her brother Dave (Janice) Jewitt, 18 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
A celebration of life to honor Phyllis will take place:
June 6, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. MDT
New Life Church/World Prayer Center
11005 Voyager Parkway
Colorado Springs, CO 80921
In lieu of flowers, Phyllis’s family requests memorial donations to:
Summit Ministries
941 Osage Ave.
Manitou Springs, CO 80829
Please pray for the Stanley family as they process the loss of Phyllis on earth and prepare to celebrate her new life in heaven.
