The National Rifle Association has seen its share of challenges over the past few years, including the departure of some really great and dedicated employees. Sadly, the most recent loss doesn’t involve a reduction in force or a layoff, but the end of a long and well-lived life.
Phil Schreier, the one-of-a-kind director of NRA Museums, passed away from Acute Myeloid Leukemia on December 28th, and his loss is acutely felt among his many friends.
In a moving tribute to Phil, NRA Media Director Mark Keefe detailed some of what made Phil so special.
He could give you the context of a person, place or event and especially a gun. For a couple of generations, he made guns and the importance of them to our freedom comfortable, real and relevant. He did nothing less than make the history of the gun cool and the part the gun has played in human freedom, liberty and dignity understandable and tangible.
When Cam & Company aired on NRA News, we had a regular segment with Phil called The Curator’s Corner. Originally Phil would come in studio every couple of weeks with a different gun from the NRA’s collection, and we’d discuss its history, provenance, and significance. As a history nerd, I loved learning from Phil, and I looked forward to his appearances.
While Phil and I got along great, he had an even stronger bond with NRA News Executive Producer John Popp, who eventually took over the Curator’s Corner segments and would travel to the NRA Museum in Fairfax, Virginia to tape segments with Phil. Many of those segments remain available to watch on YouTube, and Phil’s love of history and good humor shines through in all of them.
Phil wasn’t just an invaluable historian. He helped chronicle current events as well. As Keefe writes, Phil served as the first embedded journalist employed by the NRA since World War II when he joined the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq.
As he prepared to be embedded (at his own expense), I wished him well and told him, “Don’t die over there, Phil, or I’ll kill you.” He not only went over there to tell a story, but he was there long enough that, as he was getting ready to return home, he met with the 101st’s commanding general, David Patreus. He’d been on the ground with the 101st long enough that Gen. Petraeus personally presented him a Screaming Eagle patch and told him to wear it on his right shoulder for seeing more than 30 days of combat with the 101st. The general also gave him a Screaming Eagle lapel pin that Phil will wear the last time anyone sees him at his funeral memorial. He made friends over there, friends who will be at his memorial service, and he passed out a lot of Old Bay. Later, NRA sent him to Afghanistan, to report and represent us.
Phil Schreier was an excellent historian. He was great on television. He was outstanding at his job. More importantly though, Phil was a genuinely good and decent person. To say he will be missed is an understatement of epic proportions. Thankfully, Phil’s words and deeds live on, both online and in the hearts and minds of his many friends and fans. The world needs more Phil Schreiers, and I hate the fact that we’ve lost the genuine article.
Read the full article here
