Harold Leon Phillips was born in Drumright, Oklahoma, on December 22, 1935, and passed away on the afternoon of October 12, 2022, at his home in Bella Vista, Arkansas, at the age of 86. He was the third son born to Thomas and Virgie Phillips.

He graduated from Drumright High School in 1954 where he had been a star basketball player and a drum major in the high school marching band. Following high school, he had a tryout with the St. Louis Cardinals but always said that his pitching control wasn't the best and his baseball career ended there. He attended New Mexico State University on a basketball scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1958. He served in the United States Air Force Reserve where he was considered a critical civilian due to his engineering skills. Shortly thereafter, he went to work for Mobil Oil in Morgan City, Louisiana, where he worked on boats in the Gulf of Mexico doing seismic underwater mapping.

In 1960 he went to work for the Reda Pump Company in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. It was there he met a girl from Missouri named Eva Henson who he married on July 2, 1960. It was a marriage that lasted 62 years and was still going strong. Their oldest son, Barry, was born in 1962 and the youngest son, Bill, came along in 1964. Later that year, the family moved to Los Angeles, California where he worked as an engineer for the Peerless Pump Company and piloted small airplanes. In 1969 the family relocated to Wisconsin when he worked for Sta-Rite Industries. He rose through the ranks eventually becoming the company's General Manager. During this time, he also served as an elder for a church in Janesville.

In 1983 he was appointed president of Jacuzzi Brothers, Inc., in Little Rock, Arkansas, where he stayed until 1991. From 1988 until 1992, he served on the development board for the engineering school at Oklahoma Christian University. In 1991 he returned to his engineering roots when he formed a design and consulting firm, Pump Technology in Little Rock, Arkansas, before accepting a position with Centra-Lift in Claremore, Oklahoma, where he stayed for 12 years, and finally, working with Wood Group in Oklahoma City.

In 2009 he retired from Wood Group and settled in Bella Vista.

While still in Claremore, he and Eva became involved with the Hope Harbor Children's Home and in retirement he became even more involved with that organization, serving as Chairman of the Board for twenty years. During that time, he also oversaw both the construction of a new school building on the Hope Harbor campus and the development of the very successful Thrift Harbor store in Claremore.

He was active member of the Bella Vista Church of Christ and was eager to serve anywhere he was asked. He stayed very active with church activities including overseeing the church's benevolence program. He enjoyed reading, writing, working in his yard, working on his computer, and taking day trips with Eva.

He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Eva; sons, Barry of Orlando, Florida and Bill of Nashville, Tennessee; brother, Roy of Jenks, Oklahoma; and numerous nieces, nephews, and countless friends.

Arrangements are under the direction of Bella Vista Funeral Home & Crematory. Online condolences may be made at www.funeralmation.com.