June Whitaker

June Whitaker died on August 26, 2025 after several years battling cancer and memory loss.

Born in Winston Salem, she was the daughter of Joseph Bidgood Wahmann and Eliza Grimes Wahmann. She was widowed in 2013 when her husband, Cary Whitaker, died. She is survived by her first daughter Dr. Elizabeth Grimes Whitaker and her granddaughter Isabell Alexis "Bella" Mattox; by her second daughter Dr. Julia Waldo Whitaker; and by her son Cary Wahmann Whitaker; and by many loving relatives.

A gracious woman of integrity and generosity, June Whitaker was known for her devotion to her family, her care for others, her capacity for friendship, and her hospitable nature.

She moved from Winston Salem to Washington, NC in high school and graduated from Washington High School in 1957. She earned her BA in English at Duke University in 1961 and taught English for a year. She then entered UNC law school for a year and met Cary Whitaker there. After their marriage, they lived in Rocky Mount, NC and later moved to Roanoke Rapids, NC, where she lived for over 40 years. In 2018, she moved to the retirement center at The Forest at Duke in Durham, NC.

She grew up with a strong faith that continued throughout her adult life. She taught Sunday school, volunteered at the church, and served on the board for the Episcopal Diocese ECW and on the board for the Christian Women's Club in Roanoke Rapids, NC. She did volunteer work at the local schools in Roanoke Rapids and on the PTA. She served on the board of the Red Cross and on the board of Hannah's Place, a women's shelter. She was a member of the DAR and the Colonial Dames.

June Whitaker was dear to many people, whose lives she enriched with her love and friendship. To the end of her life, she proclaimed how blessed she was in her friends and family. Those of us who knew her were blessed to have her in our lives, and she will be sorely missed.

The memorial service will be held at St. Philips Episcopal church in Durham, NC on Saturday Sept 6 at 2pm. The service will be livestreamed at All Saints Episcopal church in Roanoke Rapids, NC for any who wish to gather together there. For those who wish to view the service remotely, the link to livestream can be requested from Clements Funeral Services in Durham, NC. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina.