Obituary of Ronald W. Phoebus

Ron Phoebus was born at home in Baltimore, MD and passed away at home in Monterey on Feb. 21, 2015, after a brave fight against metastasized lung cancer. He passed peacefully in the presence of his loving family members and two beloved Labrador retrievers, Tule and Ali. Ron was both a seaman and an airman. After graduating high school from the prestigious Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, he sailed as an ordinary seaman while awaiting an appointment to Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy on Long Island. There, Ron stood out by leading a precision drill team, serving as captain of a sailing crew, and winning several awards. He graduated at the top of his class, earning a B.S. with Honors in Nautical Science early in 1967. Ron married his high school sweetheart, Joan Stevens, and sailed off to see more of the world as a Deck Officer in the Merchant Marine, encircling the globe twice. Then, as the Vietnam War grew more intense, Ron volunteered to join the Navy if he could go to flight school. Again graduating at the top of his class in Pensacola, he was assigned to Miramar Naval Air Station in 1969, to VF-142, to fly in F4 Phantoms. Ron flew in close to 200 operational missions during the Vietnam War. In between cruises, he and Joan produced two children, Ron, Jr. and Erika Joan. Post-Vietnam, Ron transitioned to the F14 Tomcat and became a flight instructor, which eventually landed him in Iran from 1975—1977 training aviators for the Shah. By the time he ended his Navy aviation career, Ron had made over 300 carrier landings. From Iran, Ron came directly to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, where he was allowed to study the subject of his choice. He decided on oceanography and meteorology, which led him to change his designator to geophysics officer. At NPS, he met and later married his second wife, Patricia, a meteorologist at NPS. After receiving his MS degree, Ron served a short tour of duty at Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center in Monterey, where he was promoted to the rank of Commander, before moving to his next job in Washington DC. During the remainder of his Naval career, Ron served in Commanding Officer and Executive Officer positions at various operational and research centers in the Navy's geophysics command structure, including the Joint [Navy/NOAA] Ice Center in DC and the Naval Oceanographic Research Development Activity at Stennis Space Center, MS. In addition, he spent a year at the National Defense University/Industrial College of the Armed Forces studying energy policy and working with then U.S. Ambassador Vernon Walters and Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Lawrence Eagleburger. While in Mississippi, he obtained an MBA with a specialty in contract management via a Florida Institute of Technology extension program at NASA. Altogether, Ron's Merchant Marine and Navy career took him to 6 different continents, from the geographic South Pole of Antarctica to the north shore of Alaska. In 1990, Ron accepted his final assignment from the Navy. He and Pat returned to the Monterey Peninsula, where they lived in both Carmel and Monterey. Ron served as the Associate Director of the Navy's local atmospheric research laboratory until he retired from the Navy in 1991. Ron spent a short time working outside the area for the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research but soon, he was hired as the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute's Chief Financial/ Administrative Officer. While at MBARI, Ron oversaw the construction process for the office building at their new location in Moss Landing and he managed the construction of MBARI's new twin-hull research ship, the Western Flyer. Ron left MBARI after David Packard's death, and was a stockbroker with a major local firm for a short time. But that business didn't satisfy his need for technical stimulation, and he was ready for a more laid-back lifestyle. So, after 20 years out of the cockpit, Ron returned to his first love. He renewed his pilot's training through commercial pilot, and happily spent his semi-retired years as the Chief Pilot of local flying clubs/schools. During this time, he became a deputized volunteer with the Monterey County Sheriff's Aero Squadron and was elected to the Monterey Airport Board of Directors, where he was responsible for the Airport display honoring Butch Voris and Jimmy Doolittle. He was also invited to be a member of the local hanger of Quiet Birdmen. In each case, his intelligence, personality, charm, and wit made him a natural leader within these groups. Ron lived his life spontaneously and loved adventures. He had many hobbies over the years, each one approached with gusto, each one learned through complete immersion in the topic, each one mastered….then he moved on to the next challenge. His garages are littered with the remnants of past interests and projects---sporting, artistic, technical, and creative. If you can think of it, Ron had probably tried it (or wanted to): scuba diving, deep sea fishing, snorkeling, sailing, parasailing, wind-surfing, river rafting, skydiving, hot-air ballooning, powered parachuting, bungee-jumping, snow skiing and snowmobiling, photography. He was an outdoorsman who enjoyed camping and [at one time] hunting. At the same time, he liked to create things, and worked with stained glass and took welding classes because he wanted to build kinetic sculptures. He was an excellent cook, impressing Pat with his camp stove creations on their early dates, and honing his chef's skills over the years. Family and friends were treated to interesting sculptured cakes from Ron long before anyone had heard of "Ace of Cakes", and he practiced magic tricks for hours to make people smile. Ron could do anything he set his mind to do. He restored a 1957 Thunderbird to mint condition. He built a gyroplane in his garage. He completely rebuilt a kitchen. Ron was an avid reader, particularly historical novels, and also a gifted linguist who could "get by" in several languages, but recently refreshed his schooled Spanish to proficiency by reading a book. Ron was a principled, forthright, patriotic man who was passionate about his beliefs. He set high standards for himself and those around him. He was also an extremely witty man, a master of the one-liner, and a great story-teller. He lived his life fully and loved the people and the Labradors in his life deeply. He faced the end of his life with the same bravery that he lived it. Ron is survived by his beloved wife Patricia; his daughter Erika Phoebus-Davenport, her husband John Davenport and her stepson Hunter; and his brother and sister-in-law, Edgar, Jr. and Muriel Phoebus. He is pre-deceased by his parents Edgar and Marguerite Phoebus, and his son, Ron Phoebus, Jr. He also cared deeply for his wife's family, who were with him at his passing, parents U.V. and Lester Wallace, Jr. and sisters Debbie Landon and Danita Pelt. A memorial service and celebration of life reception will be held on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 11:00 am at the Mission Mortuary, 450 Camino El Estero, Monterey, CA 93940. Donations in Ron's memory can be made to either the American Cancer Society or to Monterey Bay Lab Rescue. Remembrances to the family can be left on the online obituary at http://www.missionmortuary.com/obituaries/Ronald-Phoebus/.