By Martha Williams

As the high school sports teams gear up for pre-season, I think of the many years Scarborough’s Dr. Phil Haigis was an key player in overseeing the health of the young athletes.

He was a comforting presence at all stages of the competitive process starting with the requisite physicals that assured coaches and parents of players’ well-being to the games themselves.

Fall, winter and spring he was there on the sidelines, accompanied by the excellent rescue unit he had helped create. Always forward looking and mindful of the needs of a growing Scarborough, Doc knew that a first response crew was crucial in emergency situations and he and friend Wendell Whitten worked with community groups, especially Scarborough Lions, to establish the first all-volunteer rescue unit in the state.

He begun his practice in 1944 out of the familiar office on Route 1 near the parkway that now bears his name. There were regular office hours, of course, but it wasn’t unusual to see Doc making house calls, checking up on nursing home residents and always making time for the high school sports teams. 

He and wife Faith, also known as “Stoney,” had four sons Peter, Russ, Phil Jr. and Alan, who brought their considerable talents to the courts and fields of SHS. Eldest son Peter was an outstanding baseball and basketball player. A member of the class of 1963, he experienced the highs and lows of a senior season that saw the Redskins denied the playoffs by a fraction of a point.

Russ (Rusty) was an key player in both basketball and baseball also, and like his brother, a colorful dancer who delighted the crowds at Scarborough’s weekly “Canteen” held every Saturday night at the SHS gym. The boys seemed to have inherited Doc’s musical talent, as he was an accomplished saxophone player who often joined with medical colleagues in impromptu jam sessions. The floor, built especially to promote bouncing basketballs, played a dual role in the 1960s when dancing was king among the teenage set and no one wanted to miss the Saturday night hop.

Younger brothers Phillip and Alan, also known as “Spanky,” nicknamed for the “Our Gang” character, added their own chapters to the Haigis legacy. Phillip as a Little League coach for sons Phillip Jr. and Michael, and Spanky as a baseball and basketball player as well as a standout golfer. 

Doc watched over all their activities with great interest and the quiet pride of a loving father and grandfather, but his concerns extended to all of Scarborough’s youngsters from the well-baby clinics he established with town nurse Philomene Jensen to the high schoolers of Scarborough’s growing population.

Doc was an insightful thinker, indispensable in a general practioner who might be called upon to diagnose a wide range of ailments. When my dad, coach Packy McFarland, complained of abdominal pain, Doc knew instinctively it wasn’t a muscle pull from carrying the flag in the Memorial Day parade, and insisted he go to the emergency room. Good friend and Scarborough resident, Dr. Louis Asali subsequently removed a dangerously inflamed appendix.

Somehow, Doc just knew, and many grateful Scarborough residents have similar stories to tell.

His son Russ, who provided the photos pictured here, recalled how his dad would grab hurried bites from the family dinner table and then rush back to the office which adjoined the family home. It was a way of life for the boys, who knew they’d catch a glimpse of dad later as he joined the team on the sidelines. Much later, usually after a round of housecalls, Doc would get home for a few hours sleep. He was a healer for healings sake – no one was ever refused care because they couldn’t pay. Loyal wife Stoney maintained the household, also establishing herself as well-known bowler and golfer at the Big 20 and Willowdale.

Retirement was not Doc’s style. In later years he served as a civilian medical officer at a Navy base  in Puerto Rico. When he finally settled in Naples, Fla., he maintained contact through his beloved ham radio and frequent visits to check on lifelong friends. He was an integral part of Scarborough’s history in many ways, a living presence in the community services he founded and which continue to serve Scarborough’s residents today.

When the Haigis family and many friends gathered in Scarborough last month to celebrate the life of their beloved brother, Phillip, who died in April of this year, the huge crowd of attendees bore testament to Doc’s enduring legacy.

Martha Williams is a former teacher at Scarborough High School and daughter of Packy McFarland who taught and coached at SHS for 26 years, and for whom the baseball field is named.