IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1518652
IPC COMMUNITY 49 SPRING 2024 With expertise in polymer protec- tion and an extensive background in conformal coating, Phil tests electronics to failure so that he can find the limits of products and raise those limits. "Maybe what we've done for 30 years is not what we will do for the next 30 years, and I find that excit- ing," he says. "I really like a challenge." Meeting Personal Challenges Phil faced a significant challenge when he experienced a personal loss. How he faced this loss led to an entirely new community, one built over 15,000 miles. "There was a time in my life where I was seriously unhappy, and I had an unhealthy lifestyle," he says. "I was very overweight—we're talking 300+ pounds. Then my oldest brother died of cancer. That made me revisit my life choices and wonder what meaning can be made of that sort of loss." When he was younger, he was very "sporty," and really enjoyed running. "But running at 300 pounds was never going to be fun," Phil says. "I could barely run from one lamppost to another, but I set off anyway. I used to run in the dark because I was so embarrassed, but with time I got better, eventually discovering parkrun and running a 5K, then a 10K. Then I started run- ning marathons, eventually wondering how far I could go. It's like in my engineering life, where I like breaking stuff. I like finding the limits and testing stuff to destruction, and I guess I was doing the same thing to myself in trying to find my limits." Phil ran quite a bit during the COVID lock- down, training for a 24-hour race—the first time he'd run that long. Because the UK COVID rules allowed six people to run together, Phil ran with a large group of people from his running club over the 24-hour period, allowing for "a cou - ple of hours where life was somewhat back to normal," he recalls. "Running with others was therapeutic and became a community thing. I don't know that I could have done it by myself. It's a lot harder to give up when others are relying on you." Not only were Phil's new running friends relying on him, but charitable organizations needed extra help, and Phil found a way to honor his late brother by raising funds for Mac- Millan Cancer Support, a UK charity. "MacMillan is a support network that was very helpful to my brother. By raising money for MacMillan, I had an opportunity to do something in his memory."