Obituary of Philip Ray Honaker

Philip Ray Honaker (Rooster) was born July 29, 1960 in Beckley, WV, just minutes before his twin Peggy Rose to a large Christian family.  His mother Rosie Bell Honaker raised him along with Peggy and his brothers Doug, Randy, and Jackie to love God and country.  So it was no surprise when after graduating Liberty High School in 1978, he married, and joined the United States Army. Soon afterward, in 1985 his wife gave birth to a daughter, Tabitha Rose.  In 1991 he met and married his second wife Deirdre (DeDe) in North Carolina, and in 1992 his second daughter Samantha Page was born. Then in 1993 she was followed by his only son Philip George. As they grew to adulthood he was their Superhero. After moving to North Carolina, Philip worked for Evans Construction Company owned by his father-in-law Belvin Evans for several years. Upon Belvin’s retirement, Philip landed a job at Wake Forest University in the Utility Operations Center, as the Sr. Plan Operator, where he worked for almost 20 years and had many friends he called brother. In 2018 he was honored as Employee of the Year. Philip also loved fast cars, burning rubber, and the smell of gas, so he could usually be found, most weekends, at the dragstrip where he was known as Rooster. In 2017 he was runner-up at the World Bracket Finals as part of Team Farmington.  In June of 2010 he was diagnosed with a rare cancer and began the fight of his life. Today, November 3, 2018, he lost that battle, but as you can see no one fights alone.

To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Philip Honaker, please visit our Tree Store