Philip "Phlip" Kruthers

Philip Martin "Phlip" Kruthers, 42, a Washington, D.C., Gay rodeo and leather communities member, died Sunday, January 10, 1999, at George Washington University Hospital in D.C. of liver failure caused by chronic hepatitis B, according to his close friends Gary Regan of Arlington and Bill Frost of D.C.

Kruthers was born July 18, 1956, in Paris, France, where his father was stationed with the U.S. Army. He graduated from Gibbons High School in Petersburg, Va., in 1975, and received a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond in 1979. Continuing his studies there, he received a post-baccalaureate certificate in information systems management in 1982.

Following an honors program internship with Best Products Inc., of Ashland, Va., he moved to D.C. in the early 1980s, where after four years of night school he earned a master of business administration degree in financial management from American University in 1992.

Kruthers was employed as a programmer/analyst with MCI in Arlington from 1983 to 1990. During this time, he worked briefly for GEICO insurance company in D.C., and in 1991 he became a consultant with Vista Consulting in Fairfax, Va. Since 1992, he had worked as a program analyst with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in D.C.

"Phlip had a keen intellect and a sweet and charming sense of humor, and enjoyed a wide range of avocations," Regan said.

His interests included rodeos, the Southwest, 1950s antiques, country/western dancing, skiing without poles, weightlifting, gardening, remodeling, and gourmet cooking. "Animals and pets were often the grateful recipients of his kindness," Regan said. He especially loved the leather community, Regan said, and had "a legendary collection of uniforms of all kinds."

Kruthers was a charter member and volunteer with the Atlantic Sates Gay Rodeo Association (ASGRA) and served as director of vendor operations for the first Gay rodeo east of the Mississippi.

In addition to Regan and Frost, he is survived by his brothers, Tom Kruthers of Fairfax, Va., and Clifford Kruthers of Torrance, Calif.; a sister, Chantal Scifres of Richmond, Va.; and four nieces.

He was predeceased by his parents, John V. and Mary C. Kruthers, and by his brother, Jacques Kruthers.

A celebration of life service will be Sunday, Jan. 17, at 2 p.m. at the Arlington Funeral Home, 3901 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Va. (two blocks from the Ballston Metro station). The service will be followed by a reception at Regan’s home, 900 S. 16th St., Arlington (one block from Pentagon City Mall and Joyce Street).

Memorial contributions in Kruthers’s name may be sent to the local Gay charity Brother Help Thyself, P.O. Box 77841, Washington, DC 20013.