Philip Robert Sgitcovich was born on May 27, 1933 in the old St. Mary's Hospital in Galveston, Texas. His parents were Philip Liberto Sgitcovich and Edythe Heloise Hogan.
Philip grew up in Texas City, Texas and graduated from Texas City High School in 1951. He was drafted in the Army and after basic training was sent to Japan for a year. When he got out he went to The University of Texas on the G. I. Bill. He graduated in 1958 with a Bachelor of Business Administration from The University of Texas.
His ancestors were all in the shipping business. In 1959 he went to work at the Port of Houston as a clerk in Local 1351 of the International Longshoremen Association where he worked for 36 years.
He met Elizabeth Kraus in 1960 and they were married March 12, 1963.
He loved to read and took 35 magazines and periodicals. He was a expert on Roman and Greek world history and often knew more than the tour guide when touring the sites. His granddaughters called him a "walking encyclopedia."
When he retired they started traveling and was so proud that he had traveled to Europe and Eastern Europe 27 times. Elizabeth and Philip also went to China and took a trip up the Yangtze River before the dam was built. Their last trip overseas was to Turkey.
They traveled to most of the states including Hawaii and Canada including three trips to the interior of Mexico.
In January 2005 he saw Dr. Lawrence Rice, Hemotologist at Methodist Hospital and was diagnosed with aplastic anemia. After a year of treatments it went into remission until January 2017 when it came back as MDS. This January it progressed to acute leukemia. He was getting transfusions of blood and platelets every 10 days at the end. He was extremely grateful to Dr. Rice and his assistant Linda for his care. Also thanks to Beverly and Oma and the other nurses in Walter Tower at Methodist for trying to keep him cheered up as he got the transfusions.
He leaves behind his wife Elizabeth of 57 years, his daughter Sheri and her husband Marcelo Omelczuk and granddaughters Gabrielle, Isabelle, Abigail and Olivia, his son Steven and his girlfriend Yvette in Houston, his sister Edythe Branch in Fayetteville, Arkansas, nephew Gary Branch and his family in Lubbock, Texas, nieces Laura Miller and son in Mansfield, Texas, and Julie Brandon and her husband Dabney and children in Fayetteville, Arkansas and Patrick Branch and his daughter in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Private family graveside service are being held next week. He will be buried in the Galveston County Memorial Cemetery in Hitchcock, Texas. The family requests that instead of flowers, all who are able please donate blood and platelets to your blood bank. You are truly angels on earth.