Last weekend, my friend Phil Merrill apparently fell from his boat and drowned while sailing solo in his beloved Chesapeake Bay. I hesitated to write this post for a few days, because those who know Phil always expect surprises from him.
I met Phil at the Aspen Institute and was immediately entertained by his boldness and intellectual vigor. One of a increasingly rare breed of intellectual Republicans, Phil surrounded himself on all sides with lefties. I soon learned there was nothing quite as thrilling to Phil as a spontaneous and robust policy debate. Over dinner, over lunch, in the hallway, anywhere.
I was instantly drawn to his brash style and the edicts with which he would pepper his conversation. Behind a seemingly simple and folksy facade was a brilliant mind that would craft some insurmountable arguments. However complex and academic his thoughts, they were always delivered in plain English.
Phil was also a storyteller of enviable skill with endless material to relate. He had an unmatched ability to hold court over dinner and recount fabulous tales of conducting a foreign military's marching band or huddling up in some far flung locale to negotiate nuclear disarmament with cold war Soviets.
Though to describe him in any way as 'humble' may sound funny to many who knew him, I was always impressed by his willingness to admit the things about which he knew nothing and about which he was hungry to know more. He was unabashedly honest. This is how Phil and I became friends.
Phil was fascinated by Google and so excited by the power of such a tool. He would propose derivative applications for Google off the top of his head with each new nugget he grasped. As soon as I would answer one question, Phil was at the ready with three more. In this light, I am particularly sad because Phil and his wonderful and sharp wife Ellie were scheduled to come visit me at Google very soon so Phil could bombard me with yet another wave of curiosity.
I will leave it to others to detail Phil's myriad professional and philanthropic accomplishments. This Washington Post memorial does a fine job of attempting to summarize such a full and inspiring life. In the meantime, I will just note how lucky I feel to have known him.