Philip A. Giroux

UPPER GRANITEVILLE – Philip A. Giroux, 84, of Graniteville Road, passed away Saturday, July 4, 2015, at the his home with his family at his bedside.
Born on September 28, 1930 in St. Albans, he was the son of Albert and Laurette (St. Amant) Giroux. He moved with his family in 1942 to Graniteville. He attended Holy Ghost School in Graniteville and graduated from St. Michael’s High School in Montpelier in 1949.
From 1952 until 1954, during the Korean Conflict, he served in the United States Marine Corps at Cherry Point, NC.
On September 24, 1955, Philip married Leola M. Bryant in St. Sylvester Catholic Church in Graniteville. Following their marriage, they lived for a time in Barre before moving to Graniteville. In 1964, they moved to their present home on Graniteville Road. Leola died May 29, 2014.
Phil first worked for Buy Right Super Market and Swifts Meat Packing Company. In 1957, he began his career in the granite industry. He began as an apprentice stonecutter for the Anderson-Friberg Company and went on to work for the Lawson Granite Company, Cook, Watkins, and Patch where he learned sandblasting and how to shape roses, and Beck and Beck where he worked with Arnie Lavigne. In 1967, he purchased Modern Granite Company with Adelard “Sluggo” Benoit and started Culture Craft Sand Blast Company where he worked for several years until his retirement in 1992. For several years after retirement, Phil also did cemetery lettering.
As a member of St. Sylvester Catholic Church in Graniteville, Phil served on the Finance and Parish Councils, was a lector for many years, and was active with close friends and other members in the maintenance projects of the church. He was a former member of the Knights of Columbus and the American Legion Post 10, both of Barre.
Phil took great pride in his home and the grounds around it. His interests through the years included hunting, playing golf, anything sports related, and repairing and restoring furniture. He was an avid New York Yankees and Montreal Canadians Fan.
Survivors include his son, Thomas John Giroux and his wife, Miraflor of Rutland; three daughters, Lynda Ann Salter and her husband, Norman of Monkton, Ann Marie Brown and her husband, Daniel of Graniteville, and Susan Beth Giroux-Cohen and her husband, Elliot of Pepperell, MA; six grandchildren, Meganne Elizabeth Smith, Ryan Thomas Giroux, Mallory Quinn Shepard, Morgan Teresa Salter, Seth Daniel Brown, and Curtis Philip Brown; six great-grandchildren, Marilla Kathleen, Margaret Orion, Sophie Rollins, Ayla Quinn, Sophie Ann, and Hudson Daniel; two brothers, Leonard Giroux and his wife, Elsie of Randolph and Armand Giroux and his wife, Lisbeth of East Lyme, CT; two sisters, Pauline Coates of Williston and Genevieve “Genny” LaValley of Latham, NY; and many nieces and nephews.
Besides his wife, he was predeceased by two sisters, Madeline Connerton and Simone Mary-Louis Giroux.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Friday, July 10, 2015, at 11:00 a.m. in St. Sylvester Catholic Church in Graniteville. Interment will follow in St. Sylvester Cemetery in Websterville. There are no calling hours.
Contributions in his memory may be made to the Central Vermont Home Health and Hospice, 600 Granger Road, Barre, VT 05641.