Parents of fallen Elk Grove Marine say goodbye to foundation he inspired

The Heart of a Marine Foundation has helped thousands of veterans in need since it began after Marine Lance Cpl. Phillip Frank of Elk Grove Village was killed 14 years ago Sunday in Iraq.

But the foundation was inspired more by the way Frank lived his 20 years.

Now Phil's parents, who credit Heart of a Marine and the relief it brought others with saving them from their grief, are retiring from the hands-on role they've played since its creation and shutting the foundation down this month.

"We are tired, to say the least," Georgette Frank said of her and her husband, Roy, now both in their 70s.

Over nearly 13 years, the foundation has helped veterans both at home and abroad in a variety of ways.

It has provided nearly 12,000 orthopedic canes; supplied health care facilities with computers and software to help treat traumatic brain injuries; donated more than $550,000 in new winter clothing and $11,000 to help house homeless veterans; provided $10,000 to boost the morale of injured vets, their caregivers and families; and awarded more than $44,500 in scholarships for young people who exemplify the spirit of the organization.

The reason for this and the more than $232,000 in other individual and organizational assistance was always simple for the Franks: It's what Phil would have done.

The name of the foundation, Roy says, specifically refers to the heart of one Marine, Phil.

While attending school in New Jersey, Phil not only made friends easily, but he would stand up for those he didn't know - especially if he saw anyone bullied, his parents said.

"He would always step in," Roy said. "He would not tolerate it."

And when he saw the second plane hit the south tower of the World Trade Center from the front of their house across the bay on Sept. 11, 2001, the high school senior told his parents he'd serve in any war that resulted from the unprovoked attack.

Georgette and Roy made it clear, though, that he first had a high school diploma to earn.

Barbara Matsukes, who's served as executive director of the foundation for the past decade, said she's come to know Phil's character so well that it's as if they met.

"He would stop bullying. He was the protector," she said. "With those attributes, when he saw those towers fall, he had no recourse but to stand up and protect his country."

Phil led the way when his family moved from New Jersey to Elk Grove Village after he finished high school in 2002. Georgette's sister had lived in the Northwest suburb with her husband and children for decades. The Franks visited them every year and Phil in particular fell in love with it.

"He called it the 'Father Knows Best' town," Georgette said.

After Phil's 2002 graduation, he asked to move into his aunt's house - where his uncle had since died and his cousins moved out - to build up his professional skills in the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning industry.

And so he did, but by November of the same year he was fulfilling his earlier vow by enlisting in the Marines.

Once he started serving, Georgette's sister invited Georgette and Roy to come live with her.

Georgette said she strongly doubts The Heart of a Marine Foundation would have come about if they hadn't made the move. Though she and Roy started the foundation, the support they received from the greater Elk Grove Village community enabled it, she said.

"I believe we were put where we needed to be," Georgette said. "That area has a very strong moral fiber. Patriotism abounds in the Midwest - it really does. It's amazing."

As the Franks prepare to turn another page in their lives, they are returning to their New Jersey roots for their retirement. So personal was the foundation's cause to them that they never saw it as something they could completely hand off or oversee from afar.

But the legacy of much of its work is expected to be adopted by others, such as Palatine-based Salute Inc., which is taking on the foundation's Walking Tall Project to supply veterans with ergonomically correct orthopedic canes.

As much good as they know the foundation has done for others, Georgette and Roy said it may have helped them most of all.

"I think it saved us," Roy said. "The joy we saw in the people we were able to help was a welcome tonic to help with the loss of our son."

"To be honest, when we lost Phil, neither of us felt we would survive," Georgette said. "I don't believe God took our son just so the foundation would exist, but I believe we've made lemonade from lemons. I take some solace from that."