Obituary of Philip Skelly Wright

Philip Skelly Wright died suddenly on December 2, 2016, in Tucson, AZ, at the age of 51. He was born on September 18, 1965 to Dorothy and Richard Wright, the youngest of six children. Even as a baby he was a big boy, weighing 10 lbs. when he was born. He became a big man, with a big heart. As a child, he was full of energy and never tired of skipping stones on Lake Michigan at his grandma's cabin. You could find him for hours "throwing rocks on the big water." He loved legos, the erector set and playing with the electric train. His five siblings will never forget the Christmas when Philip woke up early, went downstairs and opened every present under the tree. It was not a joyous Christmas morning when everyone else got up and found him on the floor, playing with toys and surrounded by torn up wrapping paper. Phil naturally became a Little Leaguer and a pitcher, most likely due to all the practice he got skipping stones. He was a natural athlete who could knock the cover off a baseball. As soon as he graduated from High School, Phil enlisted in the Air Force and spent several years stationed in Germany at Ramstein Air Force Base. He was a Tactical Aircraft Maintenance Specialist. In 1996, Phil was discharged from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson after 10 years of service. He was the head of maintenance at Copper Hill Apartments until 2004 when he took a job with Union Pacific Railroad where he was a switchman and trained new crew members. Phil was a talented woodworker and a mechanical genius. He built a beautiful dining table, chairs, coffee table and media rack. After buying his first house in May, he finally had his own shop to build furniture in. There didn't seem to be anything he could not fix. When Phil went to visit his parents in the late 90s, his mom asked if he could fix two lights that had not worked for about three years. Phil's dad, brother Matt and brother-in-law Chris, all tried to figure out what was wrong to no avail. His mom, Dorothy, loved to say, "the mechanical engineer and the chemist could not fix those lights, but Phil had them working in less than an hour." Phil was a gentle giant and would lend a helping hand to anyone. We will miss him. He is survived by his longtime love, Terri Lynn Carrasco; his brother, Chris Wright (Judy); sister, Julie Wright; sister Mary Wright (Chris Swersey); brother, Matt Wright; sister Ruth Hetland (Andy); nephews Duncan and Connor Swersey; Aunt Harriette Rex and a very large extended family. He is preceded in death by his parents, Richard and Dorothy Wright. Service will be held at Our Lady Queen of All Saints Catholic Church, 2915 E. 36th St, Tucson, AZ 85713, on Friday, December 9, 2016 at 9:30 a.m. An open house will be held at 9742 E. Paseo San Ardo, Tucson, AZ 85747 on Friday, December 9, 2016, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.