Eulogy

Phil Banks Jr. was named after his father of course. He tried to be as unique as he could without offending anyone or feeling too awkward. He didn't like to do things the same way as everyone else, he'd prefer to do it his own way, but he compromised at times. One of his best qualities was how much he cared about people. He tried as best as he could to take the time to listen to his friends and others that weren't quite friends and help them out in any way possible.
In his younger years, he attended two different grade schools. The first school he attended was named Paul Revere, and once in second grade, he attended Isabelle O’Keeffe, where he was put into the gifted class in third grade. His teacher felt he displayed a load of knowledge, but that he was a bit bored with the class and that he was a bit lazy more than likely. Most teachers end up feeling the same way about him to this day.
He tried to do his best although when he did, it was in an untimely matter. He hoped to be able to help others do their best as well through encouragement. Over his high school years, his character grew and he went through some very significant changes. He went from a younger, more immature teen to a more professional, well rounded, mature young man. All of the opportunities that he was given and took advantage of over the past few years helped shape him into that being.
Each summer he was given an opportunity to travel to some very amazing places. The summer after his freshman year he traveled to Colorado for a national youth gathering with his church that really opened his eyes to things outside of Chicago (aka…places where people are much nicer). The next summer he was able to visit Costa Rica on a mission trip with his church. Their mission was to fellowship and create a bond between their home church and the home church of Limon, Costa Rica and to help a few surrounding churches start Vacation Bible School classes. He really enjoyed the experience and it was very eye opening as well to see how another culture, that was a bit more poor than ours, lived. This year he was blessed to be able to go on a college tour and see some very historic places. This opened his eyes to the importance and beauty of history.
He loved community service if it dealt with actually helping someone in need of help. He hoped to work for a company (PwC or any similar company) in the future that have wonderful leadership and community service opportunities. His ultimate goal on earth was to be as helpful as he possibly could be in his remaining years. He has was a true inspiration to all teens.