City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation

Obituary
Gilbert Moses Oakley, Jr.

Durham, North Carolina

Age 76.
Died 09/25/2023.

Gilbert Moses Oakley, Jr.
Celebration of Life
October 13, 2023, 2pm
St. Michael’s Episcopal Church
1520 Canterbury Road
Raleigh, North Carolina 27608

Gilbert Moses Oakley Jr., 76, of Durham, NC, passed away on September 25, 2023 at UNC Chapel Hill after a battle with pulmonary fibrosis, surrounded by his family.

Gil was born in Roxboro, NC in 1947 to Gilbert and Ruth Oakley. Gil loved the outdoors and had many adventures with his sisters, cousins, and friends. Starting at a young age Gil worked at his father’s service station supporting the family business. Gil was an avid member of the Boy Scouts, went to Philmont Scout Ranch, and earned his Eagle Scout badge in 1963. Gil graduated from Roxboro High School in 1965, attended UNC and Holding Tech where he received an associate degree in Electrical Engineering. In 1968, he joined the US Army and served in Vietnam. Gil was proud to serve his country.

Gil met the love of his life on a blind date to a Peter Paul and Mary concert in Raleigh, NC. Gil and Jessie were married on June 8, 1969. The young couple moved to Southport, NC where Gil began his career in the nuclear power industry with CP&L. Shortly thereafter, Jessie gave birth to their first two children, Susan and David. Elizabeth was soon to follow, during the family’s brief stint in Jefferson City, Missouri. Gil capped off the final 25+ years of his career in Marietta, Georgia where he worked for the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) in various roles in management, training, and quality control, which suited his skill set and demeanor perfectly.

In 2010 Gil and Jessie returned to Raleigh, NC to be closer to family, make the most of retirement, and maximize time with their young grandchildren. Gil was overjoyed to earn the title “Papa” and delighted his grandkids at every visit. He graciously and patiently passed on his wisdom, ethics, and humor to this next generation. He taught us about respect, trustworthiness, honesty, and dignity.

Quick with a joke, a strong hug, and a prodigious storytelling ability, Gil shared his joy for life with everyone he met. He collected many lifelong friends who love him dearly, including a loyal group of kindred spirits with whom he and Jessie traveled internationally with during retirement. His physical absence from our lives is devastating, but we will carry him in our hearts always.

Gil is survived by his wife of 54 years, Jessie, his daughter Susan (Ben, grandsons William, Zachary, and Matthew), his son David (Katie, granddaughter Emily, and grandson David Jr.), and his daughter Elizabeth (Cortney). Sisters Mary Paige Denny, Jean Oakley, and Rose Anne Langley.

In lieu of flowers, we kindly request donations to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation. https://www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org

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