Forgive us, this is long but in honor of our dad, and what a special man he was, we're going to tell his story the way he would; lighthearted, humorous and drawn out.

On January 6, 2020, Willie Fred Evans, 61 of Hampton, who we all know as Fred or Freddy because he hated the name Willie, left his earthly existence to go join the Lord's greatest southern rock band in the sky.

Born to Ray & Betty Evans, both deceased, on July 22, 1958 in Columbia, SC, Fred spent his younger childhood developing a love of music that was so great, he would end up becoming The Allman Brothers Band # 1 fan. Seriously, he was obsessed with them and we challenge anyone in the world to show us a greater fan, there is none. Speaking of which, he leaves behind an extensive collection of music cd's that his daughters don't know what to do with, any takers?

His parents would eventually relocate to Hampton, VA when he was about 9 and shortly after he would insist on continuing his education at the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind in Staunton, VA until he graduated in 1977. It was there where he had some of the best times of his life and met many lifelong friends. He had lots of stories to tell and he loved to tell them often. He loved football but unfortunately, he was a squirt (his words not mine) and couldn't play so he did the next best thing and became assistant to the coach. He got to be the small guy who told all the big guys what to do and he loved every minute of it. He also loved the theatre and acted in a couple plays. We imagine he was a great actor, but then again, we are biased. During this time he also grew a love for the mountains and hiking that would continue through his life. Most importantly, he met the love of his life, Helen Marie Ragland who he pursued for quite some time, until she finally gave him a chance.

It wasn't long before he got her to fall in love with him and they married December 19, 1981 at her family church in Ruckersville, VA. It was a great love story that would last 38 years and bring two daughters into this world. While he never became a master of the grill (our family choked down a lot of burnt bbq chicken), he did master being a wonderful, loving husband and father. He shared his love of music with us, dragged us along on camping & hiking trips, spent summers taking us on family vacations, told the best (worst) dad jokes, played the boogie man to entertain us and our friends during sleepovers, gave the biggest hugs (we were sure he would squeeze us to death) and despite living with 3 women who drove him crazy, he had an undying love for us that never wavered.

Also in 1981, apparently a big year for dad, he became a civil service worker and joined the ATSC family at Ft. Eustis in Newport News, VA as a Training Technician for U.S. soldiers. While he claimed to be doing "official, government" business, we know that he spent his time there winning over the hearts of his co-workers and superiors and torturing them with his constant banter and jokes. Over the course of his career he earned many "participation awards" but the one he was most proud of was his Service of Excellence Award presented to him upon his retirement after 35 years in September of 2016. He loved his ATSC family and continued to stay in touch with them after he was freed from the old, work ball and chain.

Aside from his love of his family and friends, he was also fond of history, JFK conspiracies, long, boring novels about the civil war ( sorry folks, that collection is going to one of his grandsons who is also a fan of long, boring novels), movies and musicals and serving the deaf community. He spent a few years as President and other smaller roles of the Hampton Roads Chapter of Virginia Association for the Deaf, advocating for the Deaf community in Hampton Roads.

To sum it all up, he was a loving, caring, kind, selfless man with an infectious laugh and a great sense of humor and he will be missed greatly!

Fred is survived by his # 1 fans; loving wife; Helen Evans, his sister; Donna Sutton, daughters; Grace Hicks and April Lancour and their husbands Geoffrey Hicks and Matthew Lancour, grandchildren; Aiden, Gavin, Micah, Jadon, Charlotte, Silas, Asa and Ariel, his siblings-in-law; Keith, Judy, R.D. (Russell), Ginger and Patty and his fat, grumpy cat; Garfield (to whom he never fed lasagna).

We would like to thank all the nurses at Davita Butler Farm Dialysis, especially his dialysis nurse Ashley, who cared for our dad like a family member for 8 years.

Celebration of Life services will take place at West Hampton Baptist Church on Friday, January 17th at 3:00 p.m. We invite all you hungry folks to join us for a reception following the service.

In lieu of flowers, we ask that donations be sent in loving memory of Fred to any of the following: West Hampton Baptist Church, the American Kidney Fund or the Skin Cancer Foundation.