Bio of Phil Wing

Married 23 years - wife Mindy, daughter Whitney 13, twin sons Stephen and Kimball 11. Mindy and I met at the 1979 Holiday Bowl (BYU/Indiana) in San Diego and it was love at first sight! We were married nine months after we met in August 2003. We spent two years after we were married completing our schooling at BYU. In 1982 we moved from Provo to San Diego where I started Law School at the University of San Diego. We fell in love with San Diego and have been here for the last 21 years.

Mindy is a great wife and mother. She works endless hours raising the kids and me. She has her hands full with me, but luckily, she still keeps me around. I can't imagine what life would be without her. The kids are constantly running from school, to sports, to music, to church, to home and then start it all over again. They are all good kids; I couldn't be prouder of them. Thankfully they mainly take after their mom. We have fun skiing in the winter (the kids are now skiing circles around their old man) and surfing year-round. One of the blessings of living in San Diego is that I am able to surf for an hour or two almost every day before work (that must be why my hair has gotten so bleached out!).

Mindy and I believe in giving back to the communities where we live and we have been active in community and professional groups in addition to our church involvement. We are involved with soccer and little league baseball. Mindy is very active in the kids' schools. I have been active in a number of local bar groups and have been on the Holiday Bowl Committee for the past 15 years (too bad BYU isn't in the mix anymore, but we keep hoping). Mindy and I have served the past four years as the Brigham Young University Alumni Association Chapter Chairs for San Diego County.

We have been in the same ward since we moved to San Diego. I have had the opportunity to serve in many capacities in the church, from the young men's program, elder's quorum president, high council, high priest group leader, bishop's counselor (1st and 2nd), stake executive secretary and currently scoutmaster. Mindy has served in the young women's program, in the primary as teacher, sister friendly and recently as president, as activities leader, as nursery leader for 4 and ½ years, and currently as a counselor in the relief society.

I was blessed to have about as many companions as anyone in the mission. I learned something from each and every one of them. I am grateful to all of them for their patience and understanding. To this day several of them are some of my closest friends and I love them as if they were my brothers. I will be eternally grateful for the call to Costa Rica. I can't imagine having gone anywhere else. I learned and grew so much during my two years in Central America. I appreciate the influences that President Eagar and President Muren have had and continue to have on my life. There is rarely a day that goes by that I don't reflect in some way on my mission. (Sometimes over the past eight months while helping to plan the Reunion I wondered if I was reflecting a little too much on the mission.)

I am grateful for my testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I am grateful for the sweet memories of teaching the Gospel to the loving people of Central America. I am grateful for friendships made. I am grateful for the chance to help with the upcoming Reunion, really. I have renewed so many friendships and come to know so many new brothers and sisters that served in Costa Rica. I have been touched by so many of the mission memories that have been posted on the web page and that have been shared with me by telephone by some of the four hundred or so former missionaries that I have had the chance to call.

I have loved the challenge of trying to find former elders and sisters literally scattered among the four corners of the globe. I have felt the excitement of those hearing about the Reunion for the first time. I have waited for a response from many whom I have called that have tried to figure out who the heck I was and how the heck I got hold of them. I have heard the quiet yet vocal hopes of mothers who have given me the current phone numbers of their sons or daughters and hoped that getting in touch with their old mission friends might help bring them back into church activity.

My heart has been saddened by the discovery of the death of some of our former friends and companions. Some passed away just a few short months after they completed their missions, before they began their families or careers. Others passed away more recently, one just a few months ago, after they had married and had children but far, far too soon. Even through the sorrow, I have been comforted by the knowledge that we will see them again.

I have been amazed at the faithfulness of the missionaries that served in Costa Rica. The vast majority of the missionaries that have been contacted are active members of the Church who are rearing strong, active families. The more I think about it, the more grateful I am for the many elders and sisters and the two Mission Presidents who have had such profound influences on my life.

Companions:

1. Jonathon Stowers, LTM Provo, Utah, 9/16/76

2. Galen Darrough, Chitre, Panama 11/19/76

3. Miquel Mitchell, Panama City, Panama 12/27/76

4. Mark R. Bailey, Panama City, Panama 1/28/77

5. Victor H. Solano, Panama City, Panama 2/25/77

6. Alfred Vega, David, Panama, April 7, 1977

7. Steven J. Tiede, David, Panama, April 21, 1977

8. Richard A. Hair, San Pedro Sula, Honduras May 6, 1977

9. Warren Higgins, San Pedro Sula Honduras, June 2, 1977

10. Craig Erkelens, San Pedro Sula, Honduras, August 8, 1977

11. Larry D. Hartman, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, August 22, 1977

12. David C. Justesen, San Jose, Costa Rica October 20, 1977

13. Wayne Christensen, San Jose, Cost Rica November 17, 1977

14. Jerry D. Spangler, Nicoya, Costa Rica December 22, 1977

15. Steven T. Pierson, Nicoya, Cost Rica Jan. 19, 1978

16. Corey M. Pace, Nicoya, Costa Rica March 1, 1978

17. Jeffery D. Shepherd, Managua, Nicaragua, May 19, 1978

18. Thomas Cavanaugh, Managua, Nicaragua, June 5, 1978

19. Carlos Rodriquez, San Jose, Costa Rica, July 10, 1978

20. Douglas Handy, San Jose, Costa Rica, August 1, 1978

There was also a time when I was hooked up with Steve Ostler in San Pedro Sula, Honduras in the Summer of 1977. I have pictures of the house where we stayed, near the nice church building on the Northern side of town, but for the life of me, I can't remember much more than that. I think that it may have been between moves when Hair or Higgins went home.

Areas Served: LTM, Provo, Utah, Chitre, Panama, Panama City, Panama, David, Panama, San Pedro Sula, Honduras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Desamparados, Costa Rica, San Jose, Costa Rica, Nicoya, Quanacaste, Costa Rica, Managua, Nicaragua, San Jose, Costa Rica.