Phil was raised in the rural town of Clovis, CA where he attended elementary, junior high, and high school. He attended California Baptist College in Riverside, CA before returning to Clovis and completing his college degree at Fresno State College. He was finishing his junior year when he had to declare a major. After seeing a lot of Biology students going on field trips in the nearby Sierra Nevada Mountains, he decided a degree in Biology would be right for him. He wanted to teach Life Sciences in high school or become a Park Ranger with the National Park Service (NPS). There were many twists and turns in his career after college. He was hired as an intern in the Kings Canyon Unified School District teaching first fifth grade, then sixth grade. He was instrumental in developing an environmental education program for his sixth graders. He also worked seasonally as a Park Ranger with the NPS for seven summers and also worked weekends at Kings Canyon National Park for two years while teaching full time. After the war in Vietnam, there were so many veterans applying for full time park ranger positions that he was unable to break into the NPS full time. About that same time, the Corps of Engineers (COE) was beginning to hire park rangers and natural resource managers for their many lakes around the country. He was able to spend most of the rest of his career in the field of Resources Management in WA, OR, and ID. Along the way, he took on various teaching assignments with Walla Walla Community College and the University of Idaho. He helped develop and teach the COE's first enforcement classes nationwide. Phil is retired now and living in Dallas, OR. He decided he wanted to share some of his life experiences with friends, relatives, and others who might be interested in the work he chose for his career.

Cover Photography: LEE JUILLERAT