November 22, 1944 – May 19, 2026
Jake Cress died on May 19, 2026 and was born in 1944. He lived to be 81 years old. He wanted his obituary to include that he was a wood artist who tried to put a bit of magic in his work and used his warped sense of humor to make people think differently.
Of course, there are other things we need to say, right?
Jake was raised in Norton, lived in Fincastle, and loved being a Virginian. He was a veteran of the United States Navy Submarine Service, was an actor with stage and film credits, and was known for a number of reasons, including walking around Fincastle with a parrot on his shoulder, his love of Shakespeare, and his homemade spaghetti. He was a cabinetmaker of world renown, whose carving and traditional finishes set him apart, and his work is housed worldwide from the Smithsonian to Yale’s permanent collection, selling from his workshop in Fincastle to the auction houses of New York.
He follows his beloved wife of 45 years and partner in all things, Phebe Fullerton Cress, and leaves behind an unexpected but wholly treasured second love, Nancy Ellen Archer. We should all be so lucky.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Helen Okopinski Cress and Francis Aloysius Cress, and is survived by his brother, Joe Cress (Margaret Lynne Cress); son, Mosby Cress (Melissa Cason Cress); and his grandchildren, Jacob, Caroline, and Lilly Cress; as well as a gaggle of stepdaughters (Lynn McDowell, Adrian Blevins, and Shelly Blevins-Stanley), and their partners (Jim McDowell, Cedric Bryant, and Andy Stanley), and their children and grandchildren (Zoe Spellman, Joseph McDowell, Weston Church, Ben Church, August Rudy, Madison Weidinger, Cameron Stanley); and great-grandchildren (Phebe Spellman, Sadie Spellman, Brystol Church, and Gigi Weidinger).
We are all eternally grateful for the great care and support provided by his amazing hospice nurse Sarah Dogan.
Jake wanted to leave us with this toast: “May you live as long as you like and be happy and healthy on the day you die.”
A celebration of his life will be held in Fincastle later this year. Contributions in his memory can be made to the hospice organization of your choice.
