City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation

Obituary
Dr. John F. Evans

Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Age 75.
Died 12/29/2022.

Dr. John F. Evans
Twenty five years early for his last appointment, with no destination or activity unchecked on his bucket list, John Frank Evans has rowed into the mystic. At the age of 75, he died in peace and ease on Thursday, December 29, 2022, before the sun rose on his home in Chapel Hill, NC, finally relenting to his ultimate nemesis, metastatic prostate cancer.

One of his favorite authors, Ernest Hemmingway said, “In order to write about life, first you have to live it.” John’s journey began as the first born to Ramona and Frank Evans. His mother nurtured him by reading to him constantly, thereby giving him the drive to read at an early age. He invested the rest of his days reading, learning, writing, and teaching others to do the same.

John began his own family and his career as a high school English teacher in the Midwest. A passionate athlete, he coached basketball, cross country, and track. His kids enjoyed playing in the background and running finish times up to the booth. He enjoyed long runs, including marathoning and a 24 hour relay run. After nine seasons of building snowmen, he was called by the ocean and the opportunity to teach at the collegiate level. The family of six moved to Wilmington, NC where many of them still reside.

John studied at multiple universities, including NC State, Middlebury, NYU, and Oxford, earning his MAT, MA, Ed.D., and becoming a Writing Clinician, as well as a Certified Integrative Health Coach and Program Instructor at Duke Integrative Medicine. These credentials did not keep him from being approachable, with the exception, of course, for potential boyfriends to his three daughters. Resembling Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs, he had a presence that could be intimidating. However, he wielded the power of his dry wit to help people to laugh at themselves when they got too serious. “What have you been doing with my daughter?” he bellowed at his daughter's wedding reception, to roaring laughter. He gave the best toasts and was the kind of friend you wanted at your party and in your corner.

John broke barriers with everyone he met. His blue eyes saw the person you are, and held that image simultaneous to the person you position yourself to be. He was careful not to belittle people. Instead, he empowered others to see their dreams and to give themselves permission to be successful.

John leaves behind vivid memories of strong garlic and Van Morrison emanating from the kitchen, cups of coffee in locally owned shops, dangerously large bonfires, and miles and miles of running and rowing. He is survived by his life partner, Angela Bailey and their son, Zachary. He is also survived by his ex-wife, Linda Evans, the mother of his first four children: Kristin Morgan, Karin Greeson, Katie Carter, and John Evans, along with their spouses, five grandchildren, and one great grandchild. All knew they were dearly loved, and that he was proud of them. His immediate family survivors include two of his brothers, Mark and Brian Evans, and one sister, Paulette Swiger, as well as many cousins. John was preceded in death by his parents, Frank and Ramona Evans, a sister, Paula, and a brother, Paul. He also leaves behind students, colleagues, friends, books, writings, unbelievable stories, and unfinished pints.

His contributions to the lives of many include encouraging all to live fully - write about it; confront what you fear; and acknowledge that the rest of your life is happening now. His work will continue on the pages and keyboards of those he taught, coached, and mentored.

In lieu of flowers, find a good pen and a journal that feels good in your hands. Write about it, whatever “it” is. If you are moved to take action, give time or money to your local library or school; serve and listen to others; and support those who are living through tragedies and traumas.

For additional information or for service details, please reach out to the family directly.


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City of Oaks Cremation and Funeral Home is a full-service funeral home in Raleigh, serving all of North Carolina and beyond. We provide an alternative to costly funeral homes and every day we help families in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and all over North Carolina make simple, affordable funeral arrangements.

Simply having to reach out to a funeral home can feel overwhelming. Our goal is to simplify the entire funeral home experience and make the process as easy as possible. We hope to eliminate any unnecessary surprises by publishing our total cost and the services we provide directly on our website. All of our obituaries are provided free of charge as a way to help families celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.

Our Promise

Apples to Apples

Just like all other licensed funeral homes in North Carolina, City of Oaks Cremation, LLC is regulated by the NC Board of Funeral Service.


The same laws that apply to the big corporate funeral homes also apply to the modest independently owned firms like ours. All crematories in North Carolina, regardless of who owns them, are inspected annually by the state and must adhere to the same rules and laws.

Genuine Care

We're committed to providing families within our community unsurpassed service before, during and after the time of loss.


Our staff will provide clear communication to your family through each step as we move forward from the original phone call notifying us of a death to the time we deliver the urn back to your family. We will treat your family with the utmost respect, as we honor the wishes of your loved one.


We promise to make this process affordable and as endurable as possible.

State Wide

Our Funeral Home is located in Wake County NC; however, we provide our services to families throughout the entire State.


Unlike other funeral homes, we don't charge an additional mileage fee. Regardless of what county you live in, we can help your family with making simple, affordable funeral arrangements. From Asheville to Wilmington, we're proud to help families statewide.

Our Services

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Direct Cremation

$1196.75

Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. We include everything you need for a simple or direct cremation. Simple, affordable and reliable. We have not changed the cost of our direct cremation service since we opened City of Oaks in 2012.

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Cremation with Solidified Remains

$2875.66

We offer the option of choosing how you receive your loved ones remains. Selecting our Direct Cremation with Solidified Remains option is a beautiful way to transform cremated remains into 40-60 “stones” that you can hold.

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Cremation with Visitation

$1917.84

City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation option with onsite visitation. Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. Simple, affordable and reliable.

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Immediate Burial

$2497.50

An immediate burial has the same end result as a traditional burial; however, we have eliminated the extra (sometimes unnecessary) services prior to getting to the cemetery. Not everyone wants an open casket for viewing or a limousine for the family. Despite the term immediate, we can move as fast as you need or as slow as you like. This option simply allows you to save money by eliminating some of the fancy extras at the funeral home.

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Traditional Funeral

$5866.98

We offer the same traditional funeral services as the big corporately owned funeral homes in the area; however, we cost about half the amount. You might consider a traditional funeral service if your family is looking for an open casket visitation, a traditional church service or a funeral service in the funeral home's chapel. A traditional funeral service can be altered to fit the needs of your family.

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Green Burial

$3033.75

This establishment is one of a select number of funeral homes who meet the criteria for providing green funeral service by the Green Burial Council; a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally sustainability in the field of funeral service. Our Green options allow for a funeral to take place without the use of toxic and non-biodegradable materials/chemicals.

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Aquamation

$2640.59

As an alternative to traditional cremation, City of Oaks Funeral Home also offers Aquamation. The Aquamation process, often referred to as alkaline hydrolysis, uses a solution of water and potassium hydroxide to facilitate natural decomposition.

City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremations