Philip R. Colter

img_1116Philip Robert Colter, born 12/6/1963, peacefully passed away at home on Saturday, 9/17/16. He fought a long battle for over 2 years against glioblastoma (brain cancer). It was time for him to be at peace and to go Home to be with Jesus.

Philip was the loving husband to Diana (Pfeiffer) and father to Jacob Tyler and Brandon Philip, son of Jacob and Loreta (Phillips) Colter, brother to Mike and Mona Midden (Colter), Bob and Laura Becker (Colter), and Amy and David Colter; son-in-law to Esther Pfeiffer (Braudis) and the late William Pfeiffer; brother-in-law to David and Regina Pfeiffer, Debbie (Pfeiffer) and Steve Miller, Karen (Pfeiffer) and Frank Chandler, Paul and Nancy Pfeiffer, and Nancy (Pfeiffer) and Mike Brinson. He also leaves behind many extended family members, aunts/uncles, nieces/nephews, and many, many good friends!

Philip grew up in North St. Louis County, attended Ritenour High School and graduated in 1982. He then attended Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield, and received a degree in Industrial Arts education. He worked for Parkway School District and then Francis Howell School District. He received his master’s degree in educational administration from UMSL in 1994 but decided he wanted to stay in the classroom, working with students, rather than go into administration. He retired in May of 2015. He had a positive influence on many students throughout his years as an educator; he was a dynamic, dedicated teacher, always excited to share his knowledge with those kids anxious to absorb it.

He was diagnosed in July of 2014 with glioblastoma and began his journey of chemotherapy, radiation, surgeries, doctor’s visits, and hospital stays. He fought a good fight and we prayed often that he would receive a miracle and be healed. God had a different plan. He is at peace in heaven and we are thankful for that! Two of Philip and Diana’s greatest blessing are their children—Jacob was born in 1991 and Brandon was born in 1995. They are both wonderful young men and have a lot of their dad’s caring, loving personality traits. Jacob graduated from Missouri S&T in Rolla in May of 2015 and works for Brinkmann Constructors as an engineer; Brandon attends Missouri State University in Springfield, MO, and is working towards his doctorate in Physical Therapy. He will graduate with his bachelor’s degree in December of 2017 and then begin the 3-year program for PT.

Philip and Diana and their family enjoyed staying busy. Both boys enjoy playing sports so they were busy running to practices or sitting on the bleachers at the ballpark or in the gym for hours on end, watching them play. Their boys have always been their top priority—their pride and joy! Phil had many hobbies including working on cars, building long bows, making other gadgets (potato guns, a small cannon), and most of all, enjoying time with his wife and children. The Colters were always doing fun things together–boating on the Meramec River, trout fishing at Maramec Springs, boating/camping at Bull Shoals Lake or Norfork Lake, hiking, riding motorcycles, swimming…the list goes on and on. Lots of wonderful memories of a fun, love-filled life. We attend Eureka United Methodist Church together and throughout Phil’s illness have all become more dependent on our faith to give us strength to deal with this difficult time. We will definitely miss him deeply but we are so thankful he’s at rest in such a beautiful place.

We donated Phil’s brain and brain stem to the Legacy Program at Washington University. They are researching glioblastoma and can hopefully learn something to help cure this terrible disease. Our hope is that that something positive will come out of Phil’s illness. He will be cremated and his remains will be scattered at some special places we have been together. We are planning a memorial service at Eureka United Methodist Church on Saturday, October 1, 2016, at 1 p.m. This will be a simple service of remembrance with a gathering in the Commons for sharing before/after the service. We are also planning a celebration of life party/bonfire on Saturday, November 5th, at our house in Pacific. Please plan to come, listen to blues music, have a cold one, and remember wonderful memories that we all shared with Phil. He was such a blessing to so many of us!

In lieu of flowers or other gifts, please consider contributing to one of these funds: check payable to “Brandon P. Colter Education Fund” (mail to Bank of Washington, 200 W. Main Street, PO Box 277, Washington, MO 63090) or check payable to “Washington University—Legacy Program” (Washington University, Attention: Dr. Joshua Rubin, Campus Box 8208, 660 South Euclid Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110) Thank you all for being a blessing in our lives throughout the years.

12 Comments

  1. Mary Churchill on September 21, 2016 at 1:41 pm

    What a wonderful tribute. What a lucky family you are to have had such a loving father. Anyone would want to have been in your family. God bless all of you.
    Mary



  2. Michele Dunaway on September 21, 2016 at 1:54 pm

    I am so very sorry for your loss. Phil would often ride his motorcycle to Howell, and I’d either be in front or behind him depending on which way he took to work. His kindness and gentleness were a blessing in the workplace. I admire how brave he was and how much of a good person he was to everyone he came into contact with. My thoughts and prayers are with you all.



  3. Kimberly Racer on September 21, 2016 at 2:01 pm

    I am incredibly sorry to hear about the passing of your dad. The video you shared brought tears to my eyes. What an amazing son, brother, husband and father! How blessed you all to have had such an amazing person in your lives. Have no doubt he is still with each and every one of you. I pray you all find peace during this hard time.



  4. Lara Bocek on September 21, 2016 at 2:05 pm

    He will be missed. God bless his soul. Prayer to you and your family.



  5. Kelly Hildebrand on September 21, 2016 at 6:09 pm

    What a beautiful tribute to his life…..GOD bless you all.



  6. Debbie Faber on September 21, 2016 at 7:34 pm

    Phil was a caring man who touched all who knew him. May your family find peace in your memories until you meet again.



  7. Kim (LaBeau) Gamboa on September 22, 2016 at 7:50 am

    Diana, Jacob, Brandon and family, my heartfelt and sincere condolences to all of you. May all of the fond memories of Phil surround you and help to bring you peace. What a beautiful tribute to his life. God be with you.



  8. Anonymous on September 22, 2016 at 8:18 am

    I never had Mr. Colter as a teacher. Many of my friends however did. I can tell you he had a firm impact on what many of them currently do for a living and in had an enormous impact on how they provide for their families. Its amazing how many stories I hear at any given time from classmates. He was quite a guy but will surely live on in great memories…. which are usually hilarious as well!



  9. Rebecca Randolph on September 22, 2016 at 9:07 pm

    Wow! That video shows it all – what a wonderful man he must have been. The love in his eyes for you, Jacob and your brother and mother is shown throughout the video. Did not know he was a Harley rider – something we(my husband) have in common. He raised a fine young man – peace be with you and your beautiful family. Rebecca Randolph



  10. glenn & shirley gilbert on September 23, 2016 at 2:58 pm

    diana, glenn and & were so sorry to hear of phil’s passing. Our prayers are with and your family. (Dawn Bristow’s mom and dad)



  11. Beckie and Bob Hemsath on September 23, 2016 at 3:12 pm

    Colter Family,
    Our sincere sympathy to each of you. Mr. Colter had our boys in school and I always enjoyed talking to him at Parent Conferences, as the boys both went to Rolla for engineering and he was always very excited about that and we talked about his boys and shared stories. We are so sorry to hear of this. May The Lord bring you healing and your memories give you peace.
    The Hemsath Family
    Beckie, Bob, Travis and Tyler Hemsath



  12. Susan Hofmann on October 18, 2016 at 9:39 am

    I’m deeply saddened to hear of Phil’s health struggles and passing. I have many good Ritenour memories that he was a part of. Though we did not stay in touch after high school, he was a beautiful soul as a young man and I have no doubt that he was a wonderful husband and father. My prayers are with you all.



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