Victor "Phil" Philip Danks' Obituary
Victor Philip Danks, aka “Phil,” passed away on April 19th peacefully at his Huntsville home surrounded
by the two ladies and cat he loved the most. Phil gave the Big C a long three-year battle and his wife,
daughter, and those who knew him couldn’t be prouder of him for how hard he fought. Even up until the
day he passed, everyone commented on how good Phil looked. Even two rounds of chemotherapy and
radiation could not take that beautiful head of hair he was known for.
Phil was born on July 28th, 1944, to Ruby Pyle Danks and Adolph Danks in Honolulu, Hawaii. A world
traveler well before adulthood, he spent his upbringing in Japan, Utah, California, Germany, and
Colorado. After his mother died when Phil was a young age, his beloved Aunt Leah Pyle was a powerful
and nurturing presence in his life and was later a namesake for his daughter.
Phil attended high school in Denver, Colorado and later attended and graduated from Weber State
University in Ogden, Utah. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Airforce where he served in
Wiesbaden, Germany during the Vietnam War. With the help of his beloved base dog Norbert, Phil
worked in Ammunitions Securities and helped train other military dogs to detect enemy mine and tunnel
threats. After Germany, Phil moved back to the states in 1965 where he met his best friend, Craig.
Together, they discovered the incomparable Grand Tetons and moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming where
Phil worked for the forest service and as a river guide; and where they were self-admittedly “two wild
and crazy guys.”
After Teton life, Phil moved to Utah. While attending college, he met an ambitious redhead from Napa,
California: the love of his life, Patricia. They were married in 1973 and married for nearly 51 years. A
tough upbringing made Phil have doubts about ever being a father, but twelve years into their marriage,
they were elated to find out they were expecting. Their daughter Emily was born in 1985, immediately
putting all doubts and fears to rest. Phil aptly gave her the middle name Leah. His pride and joy, Emily
was his equally outspoken, long-legged twin flame. As a family, they began their life in beautiful, little
Huntsville, Utah; a town Phil had discovered and fell in love with long ago. The family would spend
time in Jackson Hole every summer and Thanksgivings, where locals and tourists alike would frequently
mistake Phil for the actor Sam Elliot. Patti was Phil’s rock throughout their lives together and an
incredible caretaker to him these past three years.
Over the years and throughout his career, Phil worked in commercial construction as a foreman and at
Hill Air Force Base before retirement. In his heyday, Phil was an avid golfer, skier, card player, and
Wild Turkey connoisseur. He enjoyed camping and fishing, ATV riding, loved the mountains and
tropical beaches equally, telling the occasional offensive joke, and shooting the breeze with his friends.
Phil had a tough exterior, but was mush and a softie on the inside. If you were a good person, it was easy
to break through that shell and you were then friends for life.
Phil is preceded in death by his parents and two brothers, Rick and John Danks, sister-in-law Kathy,
Aunt Leah, his mother-in-law Cleone, many dear friends, and Craig. He is survived by his wife and
daughter, sister-in-law Shauna and nephew Christian, several family members in Napa, and many good
friends and neighbors.
A paragraph that Phil wrote for a friend’s funeral a while back seems fitting for these times and the man
he was: “Sometimes life is a mystery to me. And this time brings to mind how we are all touched and
effected by the little circumstances that somehow weave us all together. Nothing flashing and grand that
brilliantly stands out, but just the simple happenstance that some association with another can bring
about such easy pleasures in one’s life. And memories…”
In lieu of flowers, please donate to The American Cancer Society, Best Friends Animal Society, or your
local animal shelter. Phil would have also wanted everyone to get out and vote. His family would like to
thank Huntsman Cancer Institute and Applegate Home Health and Hospice. A private celebration of life
for friends and family will be held in July.
Condolences can be sent to www.premierfuneral.com
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