Hero of the month… Corporal Michael Phillips 1971- 2002
“Michael was a brilliant husband, father, friend and colleague. He was such a cheeky chappy, he always had a smile plastered on his face and everybody he met loved him.”
Corporal Michael Phillips had it all, a doting wife, great friends, a job he loved, and most recently, the baby girl he’d always dreamed of.
With upcoming plans of transferring to the Royal Engineers, Michael looked forward to returning home from his mission in Sierra Leone, West Africa, where he was seizing guns from rebel territory, until a fatal crash on January 27th 2002 killed Michael suddenly.
Michael left behind his wife, Julie and daughter Hollie, who was just eight weeks old at the time.
Since she was eight years old, Hollie who is now 20, has been supported by Scotty’s Little Soldiers, the charity for bereaved Forces children and young people. This month, Scotty’s is paying tribute to her dad, Michael Phillips.
A Corporal in The Rifles regiment, Michael spent 12 years in the Army, travelling to many countries including Northern Ireland, the Falklands, and Bosnia.
Corporal Michael Phillips (bottom left)
Julie, now 50, met her husband Michael in 1999 on a night out in South Shields, and just two months later they were engaged to be married. Julie recalls: “It was his dancing that attracted me to him at first, he was great and I remember being very impressed. He used to stand at the side of the dance floor, dancing away, and one night we caught each other’s eye and he pulled me aside for a drink.
Julie and Michael on their wedding day
“The next night he came round to my flat for a takeaway and a movie, and from that moment we were smitten. Before Michael, I was happy living the single life, I wasn’t even particularly interested in having children, but that all changed when I met him. Just two months after meeting he proposed, and six months after we met, we were married. It was the perfect whirlwind romance. I thought it would last forever.”
“Michael was a brilliant husband, father, friend and colleague. He was such a cheeky chappy, he always had a smile plastered on his face and everybody he met loved him. I have such fond memories of Michael, he loved fixing cars, spending hours on his ‘red rocket’ Ford Orion. When he wasn’t with his car he’d be out sea fishing, he absolutely loved it and whenever he could find a few spare hours he’d be off catching fish.”
Michael and Julie married on the 16th October 1999, and less than two years later, welcomed their baby girl Hollie into the world. Julie recalled: “Michael absolutely doted on Hollie, and even though he died when she was a newborn, I know he would have been the perfect father."
Having spent just two weeks with his newborn daughter, Michael flew to Sierra Leone with his regiment, where, just six weeks later, he was killed in a car crash alongside a fellow comrade.
Michael and newborn Hollie
Julie discussed the day her husband died: “Michael was returning back from the jungle to gain weapons from rebels. They were on the journey back to camp, and were meant to be travelling in convoy, but the lead vehicle drove off to try get back to camp quicker.
“The vehicle which Michael was in was travelling along the highway and came across a broken-down lorry which crossed their path. When the driver of Michael’s vehicle turned to avoid the obstruction, the vehicle lost control and overturned. For two hours they were stranded alone, and Michael passed away from his injuries.
“It was half six in the morning when I found out Michael had died. Due to Hollie being so young, I had been up throughout the night with her doing night feeds. As I lived opposite the Family’s Office on Weeton Barracks, I was able to hear some talking and commotion and wondered why they were in the office so late, but I never imagined it had anything to do with Michael.
I finally fell asleep after feeding Hollie, but awoke a little while later to find someone braying on my door. I looked through the peephole and to my surprise it was the family officers. When I opened the door one of them said “I need to come in mate.” I flew back from the door crying “Is it Michael?”, and everything after that happened so quick.
With Hollie being so young, Julie didn’t have to sit her down to explain that her daddy had died straight away. Julie discussed: “I decided from the very beginning to never hide anything from Hollie. We’ve always spoken about her dad and had photos of him around the house.”
“There was just one standout time I remember noticing that Hollie was different from the other children. It was when she was about three or four, and it was while we were on holiday. Hollie was watching the other children in the pool be picked up by their dads and thrown up in the air, and Hollie wanted to be thrown too, just like the others. It was sad to see, but I knew we could get through anything together.”
“On the whole Hollie has handled the death of her dad as well as you could hope for, and I’m really proud of her for that.”
Hollie now with mum Julie
When Hollie turned eight Julie signed her up to Scotty’s Little Soldiers, and both found great comfort in the Armed Forces charity. Julie discussed: “Having the support of Scotty’s means everything to Hollie and I, they’ve done so much for us over the years. When Michael died, I was left with a newborn baby, I didn’t know any other widows, and for so long felt as though I was on my own.”
“Scotty’s has allowed Hollie and I to meet and build friendships with other parents and children that have been through the same experiences as us. Not only that, Scotty’s also provided Hollie with dance lessons for a year, and in the future will learn to drive with another grant. From the grant for dancing, to the cards she receives at poignant times of the year, all help in reminding Hollie that she is never alone and has support on hand, whenever she needs it. Being a part of a new Forces community feels wonderful.”
Hollie collecting donations for Scotty's
