Phillip D. Merritt of Fresh Pond Road in Amagansett, a carpenter, photographer, and musician who worked for East Hampton Town for the last 10 years, died on Aug. 31. The cause was a heart attack. Mr. Merritt was 60.
“Phil grew up in Amagansett,” said his wife, Diane Merritt, “and was known for surfing the local beaches, his love of music and playing in bands, and his big smile.”
Mr. Merritt was a carpenter in the private sector for 25 years before joining the town’s work force. “I’ve known Phil for many years and in many different ways,” Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez said at the town board’s Sept. 1 meeting. “I knew him as a colleague, as a talented carpenter, a gifted photographer, and as a wonderfully patient Little League coach. He coached my daughter, and our girls went to school together.” Their daughters played on the Riptides softball team together, she said.
Mr. Merritt also served as a baseball and football coach. He enjoyed nature, the New York Islanders and Yankees, woodworking, and his family, his wife said.
As a photographer, “Phil shot so any programs -- theater, cabaret, all the rock-and-roll, the jazz shows,” Josh Gladstone, LTV’s executive and creative director, said. “He was there [on Aug. 28] shooting Hamptons JazzFest and sent me the roll of shots. It was beautiful.”
“We’re going to miss his presence at our shows,” Mr. Gladstone said.
Mr. Merritt brought his carpentry skills and experience to the town every day, Ms. Burke-Gonzalez said, “and there are pieces of his work all around town. Phil was someone who always seemed to have a smile on his face. He was always eager to lend a hand. That’s just who he was.”
Phillip Merritt was born at Southampton Hospital on Jan. 2, 1966, to Samuel Delphin Merritt and the former Doris Imbusch. He grew up on Miankoma Lane in Amagansett and graduated from the Amagansett School and East Hampton High School before attending Suffolk Community College.
He and Ms. Merritt were married on Nov. 15, 1997. In addition to his wife, Mr. Merritt is survived by two children, Samantha Merritt and Devon Merritt, both of Amagansett. A sister, Susan Merritt Dayton of Amagansett, also survives, as does Stella, Mr. Merritt’s dog.
A wake was held on Tuesday at the Yardley and Pino Funeral Home in East Hampton, with a funeral service yesterday at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Amagansett, where Mr. Merritt was a member, the Rev. George Dietrich officiating. Burial at Oak Grove Cemetery in Amagansett followed.
“He was a familiar face to so many of us,” Ms. Burke-Gonzalez said, “and a big part of this community in so many different ways. We are all going to miss him.”
