Phillip was a perfect child.  He did everything early, sitting up, crawling, talking and walking.  As a matter of fact he started walking at 9 months.  One morning he walked up to the kitchen table and turned a cup of coffee over, the coffee spilled over the table and onto Phillip, missing his face but catching his neck.  We rushed him to the doctor.  The burn left a scar on Phillip' s neck that stayed with him for his 31 years.  This was a horrible time for us, we felt so guilty for the coffee being on the table never expecting him to be able to reach that high.  His poor little arms had stilts on them so he could not bend his arms to scratch his neck and pull his bandages loose.  Oh God I remember this like it was yesterday.  Phillip went through this ordeal a lot better than we did.

Phillip was always a very happy person, he always seem to have a smile for everyone.  Phillip's father and I divorced when Phillip was a young boy, but Phillip seem to adjust very well, as a matter of fact, I think he enjoyed the additional attention that he received from us.  Phillip lived with me in Alabama, he attended elementary school in Alabama.  Phillip loved most all sports but especially football and baseball.  He played both sports while in school.  I remarried and we moved to Tennessee.  My new husband had two daughters and a son and I had three sons and we all got along great.  Phillip had always been an average student in school however he did not adjust very well to high school in Tennessee.  Phillip decided he would like to go and stay with his Dad in Georgia and go to school there.  Phillip's Dad had remarried and he had a step son close to Phillip's age.  Phillip graduated from East Hall High in 1985. 

Phillip became a father at an early age, the father of beautiful twin girls Shelly and Stephanie.  Then in August of 1986, Phillip's son Sean Michael was born.  He was a beautiful baby, much like his father, but I guess he was too precious for this world because Sean died September 1, 1989 of a blood disorder.  This was a very sad time for all of us.

Sadly Phillip's marriage broke up and he moved back to Tennessee for a while. Phillip worked at different jobs, mostly restaurant work.  Phillip's father and myself were always telling Phillip he needed to get a real job with a future or go back to school.  In 1993 he moved back to Georgia, he did eventually find a good job as a truck broker and really enjoyed his work.  It seemed Phillip had finally found his place.  He had started making good money and truly loved his job.  He loved communicating with people and with this job he was talking to people a lot and making friends with people from other states.  He was having time to spend with his girls, unlike the restaurant business of working all hours, and this meant a lot to Phillip.  Phillip had continued playing sports himself some and coaching little league some.  I have trophies for Phillip and for Coach Dover.  Phillip's favorite college team was Alabama.

My son was such a sweet lovable person, he enjoyed life very much always laughing and joking, he enjoyed reading tremendously, he enjoyed a good challenging video game and most of all he enjoyed his twin girls.  The week before his death, he talked about having most of his bills paid this spring, so he would be able to save for a down payment on a house.  Phillip lived in an apartment with a good friend as a roommate.  He wanted a house so each of the girls would have a bedroom when they were at home with him.

My son will miss out on so much, his daughters dating years, he won't be able to give the guys a hard time.  He'll miss their college years, he will miss out on walking each of his daughters down the aisle when they marry, he will miss out seeing his grandchildren. He will miss out on being able to kiss them and tell them had much he loves them and how proud he is of them.  We, his family, will also miss out on being able to see him do these things.  We will miss out on being able to talk to him and tell him how much we love him and how proud we are of him.  Phillip's younger brother Tommy and his wife are expecting a child in March, he was so looking forward to being Uncle Phillip.

Phillip was very lucky to have two wonderful families that love him very much.  He is dearly missed by all of his family.  There is not a day that goes by that we don't think of him and miss that crooked little smile of his that always got him out of whatever trouble he was in with his mother.

Phillip, your mother loves you very much.