On December 28, 2024 Episcopal Charities lost a dear friend. Phil Sherman served on our Board from 2012 to 2019. He is remembered by fellow Board directors and staff as an exceptionally engaged and thoughtful person who thrived as a problem solver and cared deeply about our mission, especially about our work related to food access. In addition to being generous with his time and intellect, he and his wife of 59 years, Birgitta, have been extraordinary supporters of Episcopal Charities.
Philip Derrick Sherman was born in New York City and attended the University of Michigan, before being awarded a Fulbright Scholarship that took him to India. He returned in 1964 and attended the Harvard Business School. Phil then joined a predecessor of Citigroup and had increasingly senior roles that took him to Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, Italy and Germany, among other places. A late career move took him to Singapore for a decade. A more detailed obituary may be found here.
Phil’s work in South Korea, fragile and emerging at that time, was formative. In 1976, he was President of the Foreign Bankers Association in Seoul – at an astonishing young age for such a role (https://www.nytimes.com/1976/11/30/archives/booming-south-korean-economy-clouded-as-indicators-lag-after-months.html). In 1978, Philip was awarded the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit Sung Ye Medal by the Korean government in recognition of his work to promote economic cooperation between the Republic of Korea and the United States. After his retirement, Phil served on the Board of The Korea Society. He and Birgitta endowed The Korea Society’s Sherman Family Korea Emerging Scholar Lecture Series. You can see Phil sharing his wisdom as part of a panel discussion here.
Phil joined our board at a pivotal time for Episcopal Charities. In 2012 we were seeking stability following the financial crisis while responding to accelerating needs from grantee partners. After a career as a leader addressing complex problems often in post-war and developing economies, Phil turned his energy and extraordinary mind to hunger, homelessness, youth education and other Episcopal Charities work areas across the vast geographic footprint of the Diocese of New York.
A funeral for Phil will be held at 10 a.m. on January 20, 2025 at Christ Church Bronxville, 17 Sagamore Road, Bronxville, NY. His family have asked that gifts be made in his memory, in lieu of flowers, to us at Episcopal Charities: Make a gift In memory of Phil Sherman
We will miss our dear friend, Phil. He gave us so much for so long. And now, at the time of his passing he and his family have sought to give even more. We are grateful for his leadership, commitment and generosity.
Comments