Felix spent time in the hospital in 2002 and his wife Phyllis broke her leg, so they convalesced together with help from their daughter Colleen. In September 2002, Felix attended his granddaughter Barbi Jo's wedding on a beach in Oregon, which he was able to attend thanks to a wheelchair accessible "buggy". After the wedding, Felix went ice fishing in Minnesota while staying with Colleen for part of the winter, though they only caught one fish that day.