Obituary of Lowell Wayne Phillips

Lowell Wayne Phillips, of Weatherford, Texas, passed away peacefully on 6 Oct 2025 at the College Park Rehabilitation and Care Center in Weatherford, Texas. Wayne was born on 12 Aug 1939 in Frederick, Oklahoma, to Lowell Poole Phillips and Margie Bell Graham. Although he did consider himself part Okie, he grew up in Azle, Texas, raised by his mom Margie and his stepfather, Eddie Calbert “Pete” O’Bannon, with his sister Maybelle O’Bannon, brother Eddie Ray O’Bannon, and cousin Ann Price Rodgers.

Wayne was a hard worker and began helping to support his family early in life through farm work and working with his dad at the City of Azle Water Department. Wayne graduated from Azle High School, where he played basketball and football. Being 6′7″, he was pretty good at both and actually tried out for the Dallas Texans (later Kansas City Chiefs) but did not make the team. Wayne went to work right after high school in the grocery business, working at, managing, and helping to open neighborhood grocery stores A.L. Davis of Fort Worth and Evans of Brownwood. He was held up at gunpoint three times in this line of work and, thankfully, found his way to General Dynamics, later Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, in Fort Worth, Texas, where he worked in fabrication, production control, and eventually supply chain management on the F-16 Fighting Falcon program. He worked there for almost 50 years before his retirement in 2016. He had a great career and got to see the F-16 from concept, first flight, and full rate production through the last unit built in Fort Worth. He also got the unique opportunity of international startup of the South Korean F-16 program, where he traveled to South Korea and helped that country successfully build the F-16. Fly baby, fly!

After retiring, he worked around the house as the general gofer, tinkering in his shop, watching western movies in his man-cave, serving as the pool boy for his wife, and building, collecting, and flying model airplanes. He was a handyman, a stubborn do-it-yourselfer, and the kind of man who could always find a solution, even if it required a little duct tape and baling wire.

Wayne married the love of his life, Sharon Denice Brown, on March 4, 1993, and raised her two boys, Dameon and Justin Lev, as his own. They were happily married for almost 33 years, and he devoted his life to his family and to caring for Sharon. He also instilled that family focus in his children. The well-being of Sharon was his purpose until his last day, and, in the end, his only ask was to take care of her after he was gone.

Wayne loved to tell stories and had many to tell. His sharp memory, sense of humor, and charm combined with an adventurous life and a little mischief made for great stories about things like motorcycle rides in the mountains avoiding and not avoiding cows, having his pants sent up the flagpole in high school, chauffeuring dignitaries from South Korea, and many other stories where you found yourself laughing and also wondering how all that could have happened to one person.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Margie Bell Graham O’Bannon; stepfather, Eddie Calbert “Pete” O’Bannon; brother, Eddie Ray O’Bannon; and cousin, Ann Price Rodgers.

Wayne is survived by his wife, Sharon Denice Brown Phillips; two sons, Dameon Michael Lev and Justin David Lev and his spouse, Camille Dyan Broadus Lev; seven grandchildren, Tyler, Tanner, Dustin, Theo, Joseph, Reed, and Alleen Lev; and sister, Maybelle O’Bannon Criner.