On June 26, 2008, the life of Phil Dykeman came to a sudden end. A father, a Marine, a cousin, a friend. There are many around the world today who will pause to remember. Phil touched the hearts and minds of everyone he met. Phil was my cousin. I believe there is about 11 years separating us so we weren’t really close growing up. But in 1998 when he attended Marine Officer Candidate School (OCS) at Quantico, I got to know Phil, the man, a little better. Read the rest of this entry »