Zellner's charm, service recalled

Millard Fillmore "Phil'' Zellner, 71, died Wednesday of lung cancer.

By JORGE SANCHEZ

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 11, 2000

INVERNESS -- Floral City native Millard Fillmore "Phil" Zellner was remembered at his memorial services Saturday as much for his toothy smile and folksy charm as he was for the 24 years he served on the Citrus County School Board.

Zellner died Wednesday, about a month after being diagnosed with lung cancer. He was 71.

Eulogists recalled the lifetime of memories Zellner left them with, from thrilling airboat rides and frog-gigging expeditions to giving his two daughters driving lessons when they were about five years old. The girls would drive a hay truck across a pasture while Zellner would ride in the back, giving instructions and tossing the bales to the herd.

The Rev. Larry Hartman of Church of Christ in Floral City told the overflow crowd at Hooper's Funeral Home that Zellner was a man who had "touched many lives."

"Back in 1961 when I was in high school, I remember him cheering the football and basketball teams," Hartman said. "He was always concerned about and interested in young people."

Hartman told the audience he counseled Zellner on his deathbed, just as he had counseled Zellner's mother some years earlier. They both told him of how strongly they felt about being good Christians.

Zellner's straightforward manner was also recalled by Hartman and others who spoke at his memorial service.

"He was a man of strong character. He would look you in the eye and tell you exactly what he thought, no matter if you weren't prepared to handle it," said nephew John A. Zellner Jr. "Our family is not like that, generally; we're more soft-spoken. My uncle was cut from a different block."

John Zellner said when he was 2 years old, he was in a body cast, recovering from a broken leg and other injuries suffered in a car crash.

"(My uncle) told me I was the most pitiful thing he'd ever seen," John Zellner said. "He would pick me up and take me on tractor rides, which was a big thrill. "Just a few days ago, seeing him fight with every muscle to draw a breath to keep living, I realized he was the most pitiful thing I'd ever seen. It had come full circle. And now, I'm here to give him a tractor ride into eternity." The audience was moved to laughter several times as John Zellner and Michael Sanicola, a son-in-law, recounted how Zellner let his daughters drive the farm truck. Sanicola also read letters written by Zellner's daughters, Paula and Dena.

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