Phillip J Boomgard

Phil was born October 5, 1923, to James and Catherine Boomgaard in Spring Lake. He married Olive Boomgard nee Terlinden on February 14, 1953 in Coronado, California. She preceded him in death in 1994.

Phil will be lovingly remembered by his daughters, Monica (Ward Benshoof) Boomgard and Lisa (Robert) Thomas:; his grandson, Kevin Thomas: sisters: Mildred DeBroux of Milwaukee, Cathleen Newell of Spring Lake, Helen Ball of Grand Haven; and brothers William (Sharon) Boomgaard of Grand Haven, and Joseph (Bette) Boomgaard of Grand Haven. He was preceded in death by his brothers, James, Robert, and Peter Boomgaard.

Joining the navy as a seaman in 1941, Phil’s naval career took a turn when he was recruited into pilot training. In 1944 at U.S. Pre-flight school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Phil met football legend, Otto Graham on the 1944 North Carolina Preflight Cloud Busters. Spending much of his time during the war flying reconnaissance from an airbase in Guam, he returned eventually returned to San Diego, met and married Olive and was hired by United Airlines, training in Denver. He and his wife moved to Chicago, then New York where his daughters were born, and in 1964 to Santa Monica.

His career at United Airlines spanned 30 years. Most enjoyable for Phil was the experience of flying the sports team charters in the 1960s, 70s and 80s including the New York Giants, the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Rams. Being a part of the “golden age” of flying, Phil had many opportunities to meet with many cultural icons of the day such as Mickey Mantle, Leonard Bernstein, Marilyn Monroe, and Rosie Greer. He retired in 1987, eventually moving to Palm Desert. Retirement to the desert in 1994 meant he could pursue one of his passions: golf.

A mass will be celebrated at Sacred Heart Church in Palm Desert on July 30th, 2017 at 9:15am in his memory. A Celebration of Life is planned for Phil and will be announced at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to either Angel View in Cathedral City, CA (http://www.angelview.org/Make-a-Donation) or the American Cancer Society.