USA Archery acknowledges the loss of Phil Hoelle, longtime archer, coach and friend to many. Phil, who passed away at the age of 56, was an inductee in the New York State Archery Association Hall of Fame for tournament performance, worked as a retail manager for many years, and served the Boy Scouts of America through the Suffolk County Council BSA. Phil introduced the sport of archery to hundreds of children throughout his years of service. He also recently completed the Community Coach Course. Phil, who is survived by his beloved wife Norah, and his children Sean and Erin, was also the brother of Edward and Patti Hoelle, and Kathleen Carley. He was a resident of Long Island, New York.
USA Archery wishes to thank two archers and longtime friends of Phil who offered to share their memories of him:
"Phil was a great friend and archer. We were together at National Training camps (in the 80's) and he always made sure that I wasn't left behind since I was usually one of the younger ones. Phil, Norah (his wife) & I would always meet up at a tournament and hang out together. He could always make you smile and always had a smile whenever you saw him. Lately, Phil would call me and just hearing his voice, made you smile. Phil loved archery and competing. When he wasn't able to compete anymore he became involved with coaching. He help out at the Boy Scout camps coaching archery, coached individual kids to love the sports too. I believed he worked at either Sports Authority or Dicks and he was the man to go to for the archery knowledge. Phil recently was able to participate in the Community Coach Course. I recall him calling me up and saying he was glad that I persuaded him to enroll in the course. The one thing I remember about Phil the most was that he called me his 'Little Sister' and I would reply 'thanks Brother.'" - Cindy Bevilacqua (longtime tournament archer, coach, Grassroots/JOAD Director for the USA Archery Board of Directors)
"One of the things Phil used to tell me often is "the only arrow that counts is the one in the bow." He was the one who got me started in archery at boy scout camp; he would tell me stories from when he was shooting as part of the U.S. National Team. He would call me after every tournament to check in on me. Phil was such an influence on me, being my first coach and a very close family friend. It will be hard to shoot without him teasing me about how the colors on my bow don't match up, or how much money we spent on expensive arrows, but I know that no matter what happens from now until the end of my archery career, he was proud of me, and I am grateful that he was the one who got me started in archery." - Eliot Simon (Junior Dream Team member, Cadet USAT Member, World Youth Archery Championships Team Member).
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