It's funny how you can live in the same small town and never meet everyone. Maybe you've heard their name and would recognize them if you saw them, but still never meet. I graduated high school with David, Phil's older brother and we didn't hang out, but I knew who he was. So, we finish high school, begin our lives, and forget about lots of the people we knew. For me, I got married, had three beautiful children, moved away, but 15 years later found myself back in Arizona. I lived in Phoenix for awhile with my sister, Nancy and her husband Tony Grijalva. While there, they took me out to a few of the local "hangouts", where I saw so many Ajo people and reconnected with David and Phil. Phil and I seemed to hit it off and talked and eventually saw each other occasionally. This was in the 90's and I believe he was playing with Nightrider at the time. This went on for a few months, but he had his career with the band, and I had my kids and slowly we drifted apart. I didn't hear from him again until 2010, when I came across his profile on Facebook. Didn't know if he would remember me, but I requested him anyway. He accepted, and from there we began talking everyday, sometimes hours at a time. After several months, he invited me to come to Ajo to visit him, and at first I wasn't sure but he convinced me to change my mind. It had been 20 years since we had seen each other and knew we both had changed. We had video chatted for several months at that point so neither one of us was "in complete shock". He was still the same old Phil, with the long hair and bushy mustache. I spent the day with him, just talking and laughing more than I had in a long time. I left with the promise that I would be back. It was about a month before I went back and spent a few days, and that was the beginning. He made me feel so happy and the thing I loved most about him was that he always told me I was beautiful. After several months of going back and forth, I got a phone call from his cousin saying that Phil was in the hospital with pneumonia. I was living in Casa Grande, but I drove to Phoenix whenever I got the chance, to see him. When he was released, he went to HealthSouth, a rehab facility, to regain his strength. I was there almost everyday, taking care of him and just loving him. When he was eventually released, I convinced him to stay with me in Casa Grande, until he was able to care for himself. I still had my grandson, AJ, living with me so I wasn't able to be in Ajo everyday. We stayed in Casa Grande, he regained his strength, gained some weight (he was finally eating home cooked meals instead of TV dinners and Ramen noodles). As soon as AJ turned 18, Phil convinced me to move back to Ajo. We made his humble house into our home and began our lives again, together. We were so happy and loved each other so very much. He was no longer able to play the drums, because of his health, but he talked about it all the time. There was always music blasting in the house. Our families were so thrilled for both of us...we had finally reconnected with our soulmates. His family loved me and said they had never seen Phil happier. My kids loved him and he loved them, too, as if they were his own. My son had told me one day, "Mom, you're so happy since you and Phil got together." And it's so true, we both were! Phil had a special bond with our grandson, Gabriel, his little "buddy buddy". They became inseparable whenever they were together. Gabriel would constantly ask to come see Tata Phil, never Gramma, lol! We had started talking about getting married, but he still had to take care of a few details. We had talked about taking the big step in October, on my birthday. We were both in better health than we had been in quite some time, and most importantly, we were happy! Not a day went by that we weren't laughing and talking and listening to his music. The neighbors would often stop him in the yard and ask him, "What's it gonna be today? Rock, country, jazz?" They learned to love the music that was always blaring from the house. Then one afternoon, God looked down and said "I need Philip to join my Heavenly band." And he was taken from my arms to make his final journey home. I will always love him and keep the memories alive in my heart until one day I see him again in Heaven. Rest in Paradise, my sweet, sweet love. You are so deeply missed by me and the families, and the countless friends that you made while you were here. We will never forget you!! XOXO Forever yours, your "hunny bunny", Linda