Phillip Koons
Phillip Koons’ career has changed since his time as the youth missions coordinator at Park Cities Presbyterian Church, but his goals haven’t.
Koons felt called to leave the vocational ministry for the business world. Today, he is still working both personally and professionally to faithfully follow Christ while seeking to glorify God. Koons is vice president, relationship manager at Veritex Community Bank, where he started in the credit underwriting program nearly a decade ago.
“Over the last six years as a relationship manager, my goal has been to build meaningful relationships and help individuals and businesses make wise decisions to achieve their goals,” he said. “I feel a great sense of responsibility to bring wise counsel as my clients seek to steward their resources.”
Koons and his wife, Mary Love, continue to serve the Lord through their involvement in the community. At Park Cities Presbyterian Church, the couple is involved in pre-marriage ministry, marriage ministry, nursery ministry and overall men/women ministries. They also devote their time to Behind Every Door Ministries, as well as to Highland Park Presbyterian Day School, where Koons serves as president of the Dads Club, and Mary Love is room parent coordinator.
“Mary Love and I have been the recipients of beautiful, sacrificial love from many people in this community who have walked with us in good and bad times,” Koons said. “We feel a beautiful responsibility to pay it forward and do the same for others, both in this community and the surrounding area.”
What (or who) motivated you to get involved in the community?
God has blessed me and my family with an abundant and tremendous life, even through the hard things. We believe that God calls us to use all that we are and all that He has blessed us with to be a blessing to others. Mary Love and I have been the recipients of beautiful, sacrificial love from many people in this community who have walked with us in good and bad times. We feel a beautiful responsibility to pay it forward and do the same for others, both in this community and the surrounding area. God and His people have poured out their love on us and it motivates and inspires us to do the same for those we encounter in our neighborhood, on the playground, at work, at our children’s school and all other centers of influence.
What was your first job and what did you learn from it?
The first job that I remember was being a referee for the Park Cities YMCA, an institution that my father was heavily involved in. Being a YMCA referee taught me to have grace for referees that I come across because it is a really hard and thankless job. It also showed me how not to treat a middle school age referee if my 9-year-old’s soccer playoff game goes to a shootout.
What’s on your bucket list?
My wife and I have a long list of places we long to travel with our girls. We have so much to learn from other cultures and so many beautiful and curious places I want to see ….
What accomplishment are you the proudest of and why?
My family.
What was your “lightbulb moment” that led you to your career?
When I was pivoting from youth ministry, I really struggled with knowing what industry to jump into. Most of my friends were either in the real estate or oil and gas business. For me, I knew that I loved and felt gifted at building culture, inspiring teams and pouring into younger guys. I am grateful to a mentor, Kit Case, who wisely stated that I could do all of those things in any industry, but I needed to learn business, so he recommended I explore underwriting programs. I am grateful for his wise and pointed counsel in my job search. Kit introduced me to Jack Sides who worked at Veritex Community Bank and he helped get the door cracked for what has now been an 8-year tenure.
What’s a fun fact that someone wouldn’t know about you?
I am one of four brothers. My parents had two boys under the age of 5 and went for a girl; they got me and my twin brother
Where do you see yourself and/or your career 10 years from now?
The most notable thing that comes to mind when I think of ten years from now is that I will have been married almost 23 years, the father of 12-and 13-year-old girls, and also knocking on the door of being 50 years old. I believe that each stage of life has both exciting and challenging components, but I hope that 10 years from now my wife and I are still filled with the wonder of God’s love for us, deep love and curiosity towards each other, sustained excitement of watching our girls grow into young ladies and the conviction of allowing God’s blessings to flow through us into those around us. I do not know what God has planned professionally over the next 10 years, but I do know the family He has blessed me with. I greatly look forward to navigating the next decade with the love of Jesus as my sustaining fuel and foundation, while also supported by the love and support of my wife and daughters.
What would you tell an 18-year-old you?
I would tell myself that you don’t have to fix everything, and it is okay to admit that some things are hard. I would tell myself to go to counseling with the goal being to identify emotions, critically think and have language to process. That journey began for me when I was 32 and I wish I had done it way earlier.
What was your toughest business or personal challenge?
The toughest challenge I have faced in my life would have to be our 5-year infertility battle….
How do you motivate yourself and others?
Every human being longs to be fully known and fully loved. That is both our greatest desire to obtain and biggest fear to lose. I find great energy and joy in building teams and mentoring younger men. Culture is formed and sustained by a clear sense of purpose and identity.
If you could buy a book (or rent a movie) for your neighbor, what would it be and why?
Every Good Endeavor by Tim Keller — this book transformed the way I view God’s design of work, so I recommend it to anyone in the working world.
I would rent Lord of the Rings for any neighbor who has not seen it before.
What advice do you have for other young professionals?
I would encourage young professionals that life is too short to be in a toxic work environment. There is no amount of income that justifies sacrificing your morality or family. Who you are and what you believe will dictate who you will become as a business professional. Find someone older than you who you want to emulate and pursue a one-on-one relationship with them. Do not believe the lie that you have to sacrifice people or your integrity to advance your career. This is a long-term game, and the truth is always revealed in time. If you work with excellence, honesty, integrity, and transparency, the cream always floats to the top over time.
