It is with a broken heart that I let friends of Philip Irving Wells know that he passed away early in the morning of June 21, 2022 at age 84.  His passing was almost to the minute of the Summer Solstice, particularly appropriate for a lifelong astronomy enthusiast.  He left his worn out body in the arms of Della, his adoring wife and best friend of more than 50 years.

Phil was born in Mountain Home, Idaho on April 24, 1938, the 13th of 14 children to Allen Clay Wells and wife Alta.  He would joke that his family was so poor, they couldn't afford two Ls and thus the spelling of Philip.  He grew up in the tiny rural community of Pine and attended a one room schoolhouse until his high school years.   He would laughingly exclaim that half of the school was comprised of kids from his family.  Instead of a parking lot or bicycle rack, this school had a corral and hitching posts to accommodate the mode of transportation of the era.  His fascination with aerodynamics began early in life.  He would test varying paper airplanes' design attributes by releasing them from the top of a bluff overlooking their ranch below.  It was quite an undertaking for a little guy to climb to the top, release an airplane, scramble back down, and then repeat the same actions again and again.  This illustrates his tenacious quest for knowledge and his sense of wonder at the mysteries of the Universe.

Phil's family moved to the "city" when he went to high school graduating from Mountain Home High School with the class of 1956.  His actions during these high school years portrayed his ambition and the sacrifices he was willing to make in order to obtain his goals.  In the afternoons following school hours he would work in a grocery store where he learned meat cutting skills that proved valuable when he later owned restaurants.  When the store closed for the day he would go to his job in the local theater running the projector.  He was a highly acclaimed Civil Air Patrol Cadet and was honored to be chosen to attend a Congressional dinner in Washington DC.  Pretty impressive for a kid raised in the backwoods.  After high school he joined the Air Force.  As in his other endeavors, he excelled and after an extensive screening process from which only a handful moved forward, he was selected to participate in an elite USAF Intensive Course in the Chinese Language at Yale University which he successfully completed in Feb, 1958.

Phil's spirit continues on in his 2 living sons, Philip Wells Jr and wife Ruta of Oregon and Wayne Wells   and wife Carla of Washington, 8 beloved grandchildren and their spouses, 16 precious great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.  He was quite pleased when one of the great grandsons lovingly dubbed him  "Philip the Great, Grandpa".  Phil experienced tremendous joy when interacting with, teaching, and guiding those grandchildren and "The Greats" (as he collectively referred to the great grandchildren) who form our future generations.  He was also very proud of the exceptional parents that the grandchildren and their spouses have become.  He felt that because of them and other American families like theirs, there is hope for the future of our nation that he so loved.

It weighed heavily on Phil's heart that he was predeceased by his son & business partner, Charles Wells of Rainbow, CA and his daughter, Sherri George, of Twin Falls, Idaho.  He was looking forward to seeing them again upon his passing.  Their loss was softened by the priceless gift of legacy they left behind.  Son Chuck had 6 children:  Granddaughter Lisa with husband Harold and their sons Wyatt & Jack, Granddaughter Kristie with husband Lee and their sons Cody & Connor, Grandson Karl and children Jacob, Hans, Denver, & Thomas, Granddaughter Jennifer and husband Blake and son Stanley, Granddaughter Sally and her husband James and children Ace, Clementine, Adelaide, and Charles, and the youngest of those 6, Grandson Andy.  Daughter Sherri's had 2 children: Granddaughter Ashleen and children Milo, Oliver, and Molly and Grandson Allen and wife Shantya.

Phil tried and mastered many entrepreneurial pursuits in his adult life, including having a high producing Wonder Bread truck route, being a restaurateur (owning as many as three at one time), making from scratch and selling the best Pizzas in the world, being a miner with 7 dump trucks and pup trailers (he never did anything half way), becoming an electronics master, and successfully owning and operating AAA Star Satellite with his son Chuck.  He was enthusiastic in his love for flying and became a private pilot at a very young age.  He was the proud owner of a beautiful Beechcraft Bonanza and later of a Cherokee 6.  Phil enjoyed Country music, politics, watching TV, hunting trips, deep sea fishing, being a redneck, conversing on any subject imaginable, fixing broken stuff from whatever he could get his hands on at the moment of need (well maybe that wasn't an enjoyment as much as a necessity because you definitely wanted to stay out of his way until the job was completed), imparting his extensive knowledge and wisdom to anyone who would listen, and as previously mentioned astronomy, flying, and the pursuit of knowledge and answers to the unknown.  

Phil has been referred to by many who knew him as "the smartest man I know!".  He has also been referred to as "bigger than life".  Phil had that rare combination of extreme intellect balanced by old fashioned common sense that enabled him to fix almost anything or solve almost any problem he was presented with.  He also had a quick wit and an outrageous sense of humor and could tell jokes endlessly for hours on end.  He experienced great delight in the many cruises with Della and sometimes other friends to various destinations in the World.  He was surprised at how much he enjoyed Iceland and Gibraltar.  He also treasured extended RV adventures with Della across America and parts of Canada.  Sometimes the trips were as long as six months at a time.  These journeys created fond memories and enabled extended visits with relatives & friends and in-depth exploration of numerous State & National Parks, Historical Sites, setting foot in areas where his ancestors had been from, and visits to Nashville and Branson and other locations of interest.  Phil claimed the most beautiful spot in the World he had experienced was Banff National Park in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.  He viewed traveling as a way to learn and to experience something new.

Phil was a self proclaimed spiritualist with deep faith and was ready to go "home" and begin plans for his next grand adventure.  He left indicating that he had had a wonderful, diversified life and had done everything he had wanted to do in his life.  How many of us can say that?  Phil's friends and family all have incredible memories of his humor, intellect, and knowledge.  Anytime someone had a question regarding almost any subject, the response was always...."ask Phil".  He was dearly loved and will be dearly missed until we see him again.  Soar high my love and watch over us!

A Celebration of Phil's life will be held July 24th at 6969 Rainbow Heights Rd, Fallbrook 92028 starting at 4PM including dinner and time to sit and tell funny stories and fond remembrances in a casual, joyful manner.  All are welcome.  Please email Della at dellaw@sunshineprops.net with any questions or to let us know you plan to attend or if you would like to receive an invitation to participate from your own home or other location of your choice.