Beloved husband, father, and grandfather Philip M. Slocum, age 69, a long-time resident of Wheaton, peacefully passed away surrounded by his family on Friday, September 3, 2021. He was born July 21, 1952 in Beloit, Wisconsin to Kenneth & Arleene Slocum, and lived on the family farm until the age of 4 when the family moved to Winnebago. Despite moving "into town", as Phil liked to say, he was always proud of his farming roots, and grew up active in 4-H, working on neighboring farms, creating his own popcorn business, and delivering newspapers every morning on his bike with the protection of his dog Duke. Phil loved his years at Winnebago High School where he was active in sports and student leadership, and began his God given gift for making lifelong friends.

Phil attended Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin where he was the center on the football team, earned the nickname of King RA, for being the resident assistant in his dormitory, and continued his legacy of making more lifelong friends from his membership in the Tau Sig Fraternity. In the Fall of 1972, he met the love of his life Diane. They were married in 1976 and recently celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary.

Phil went on to earn his Masters Degree in Organizational Behavior and spent his entire 42 year career at The Chicago Board Options Exchange before retiring in 2017. He was a beloved member of the community of First Presbyterian Church of Wheaton since 1990 serving as a Stephen Minister, an Elder, and on many different committees and ministries. He was a vital member of the Finance Committee of Chicago Presbytery committed to leading and attending zoom calls right up until his final weeks. Phil always said that because he was so deeply blessed he owed it to the world to share those blessings with others, which he did through a lifetime of volunteering and donating his time and resources to countless missions.

Through the years, Phil continued to expand his group of friends. He loved golfing, playing cards, and just sitting around reminiscing and laughing about good times with old friends. People loved to hear his stories, and in these last few difficult years his friends have all reached out to reconnect and be there for Phil. He felt like the most blessed man to have so many good friendships.

But ultimately, the thing that truly made Phil the happiest, was being with family- his wife, kids, nieces, nephews, siblings, in-laws, and most certainly in the last ten years his nine grandchildren. They filled his life with so much joy, and his home was always welcome to everyone. Phil cherished his time with family at Silver Lake, his trips to California, and all the fun vacations where so many wonderful memories were made.

In 2018, Phil was diagnosed with stage 4 appendiceal cancer. For three years, Phil endured the ongoing challenges of fighting the cancer with amazing courage, resilience, and faith. His determination to not let the disease define who he was will leave a lasting legacy on those of us who walked alongside him in the journey. We are forever grateful for the grace and love of a God who walked with us.

Phil Slocum was a man of deep faith and unconditional love that was lived out through the ways he always showed up for those he loved. He will always be remembered for signing every letter, every text, and every message with the words, "good stuff", because for him, love was simply, THE GOOD STUFF.

Phil is survived by his wife of 45 years, Diane; his beloved children Megan (Jason) Rotter, Mark (Liz) Slocum, Kelly (Todd) Phillips & James Slocum; the grandchildren he adored: Jackson, Ava & Vivian Rotter; Hayes, Reid & Maeve Slocum; and Grayson, Lucas & Oliver Phillips. He is also survived by his siblings Kay (Chuck) Lussenhop, Richard (Cindy) Slocum, Susan Slocum, Mary Henry and his sister-in-law Rhonda Paris.

He was preceded in death by his older brother Ken and his parents.

A visitation will be held Saturday, September 11, 2021, from 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. at Hultgren Funeral Home, 304 N. Main St., Wheaton. A funeral service will be held Sunday, September 12, 2021, at 3:00 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Wheaton, 715 N. Carlton Ave., Wheaton. For those unable to attend the service in person, a livestream will be available through this link: www.firstpreswheaton.org/livestream

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be made to First Presbyterian Church of Wheaton using the memorial fund option and putting "Phil Slocum" in the memo. Gifts will support Missions, Audio Visual, and Youth Ministries at First Pres. To make a contribution please use this link: www.firstpreswheaton.org/onlinegiving