Our Caring Staff

Riley is a third generation funeral service professional. His grandfather, Hayes Downing Phillips, founded Phillips Funeral Home in 1907. His father, Melvin Riley Phillips, Sr., continued managing the business until his death in 1967. A few years later, Riley graduated from Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science and returned home to take over the day-to-day operations. It has been his pleasure to serve the community and surrounding area for over fifty years. 

His commitment to volunteer work shows in the awards he has received: Outstanding Young Fireman, Outstanding Young Businessman, VFW Citizen of the Year, Star Fiddlers' Convention C.V. Richardson Memorial, Boy Scouts of America Award of Merit, and Eagle Scout. He retired from Star Volunteer Fire Department after thirty-two years, is a past district director for the North Carolina Funeral Directors' Association, served on the board of directors for the Boy Scouts of America Central NC Council, and has held many positions at Star United Methodist Church where he remains a lifetime member. 

Riley is married and has one son. He enjoys spending time outdoors with his family and friends. 

Jonathan began working at a Phillips Funeral Home in Star in 2000.  In 2017, Phillips Funeral Home merged with Pugh Funeral Home and Jonathan joined our staff.  He received his North Carolina Funeral Service License in 1992 after graduating from Fayetteville Technical Community College and possesses the National Board of Funeral Service Examining credentials.  Jonanthan also holds a Bachelor of Science degree from UNC-Wilmington.  Jonathan is of the Baptist faith and participates in church and community activities.  In his free time, Jonathan enjoys the great outdoors – in particular fishing, hunting, camping and gunsmithing. 

Lisa Asbill came to work for Phillips Funeral Home in June 2021 as Office Administrator. Prior to Coming to Phillips, Lisa worked in the propane industry for 20 years.   She is a native of Montgomery County and is married with two children.  She attends and is a member of Southside Baptist Church in Biscoe. In her spare time, Lisa enjoys reading, gardening and taking camping trips with her family. 

Hubert was born in Montgomery County which is where he still calls “home” today.  He has been employed with Phillips Funeral Home since 1997 as a Funeral Assistant. Hubert has had dual careers as a Pastor and retired from Clayson Hosiery Mill. He has 2 adult children and is an active member at his church.

Born and raised in Montgomery County, Dink has been working at Phillips Funeral Home since 2001. He is so dedicated to his service that he can tell you how many funerals he has been a part of, which now is over 1,400!  He is an active member of Beulah Baptist Church in Bennett. Dink retired from Energizer Battery in Asheboro after 25 years.  He has one daughter and one son and 2 grandchildren. Dink has been singing gospel music with Swordsmen Quartet for over 55 years. 

Gene was born in Baden, NC.  After graduating from school in Stanly County, he attended Appalachian State University.  Gene taught Biology at East Montgomery High School, was a Coach, Athletic Director and retired as the Assistant Principal in 1995.  In retirement, he dabbled in insurance and came to work at Phillips Funeral Home.  Gene is married with 2 children and 5 grandchildren.  He is a member of First Baptist Church in Biscoe for over 50 years. Gene volunteered in prison ministry for 10 years and is a member of the Christian Motorcyclist Association.

Mark came to work with us at Phillips in 2017.  He was born in Troy and raised in Star.  Mark graduated from East Montgomery High School and after graduation, started a furniture business with his brother.  Mark and his brother made furniture for Klaussner Furniture Industries in Asheboro for 30 years.  He was an avid collector of antiques and enjoys spending time at the river.  Mark spends much of his free time now serving on the Board in Star and he is also Mayor Pro Tem.

Donald was born in Asheboro and raised in Montgomery County.  After graduating from East Montgomery High School, he went to work for Morgan and Jones for many years.  After they relocated their business, Donald decided to stay in Montgomery County and worked in construction, drove a tractor-trailer, worked at Montgomery County Water Works and then retired after working for the Town of Troy for 30 years.  Donald was a member of the North Carolina Officials Association and called basketball and softball games up until 2022.  Donald has been with Phillips Funeral Home since 2018. He has 2 daughters and 2 grandchildren.  He attends First Baptist Church in Troy.

Willis was born and raised in Montgomery County.  He has been with Phillips Funeral Home for 5 years.  Willis is married with 2 daughters and 4 grandchildren.  In his spare time, you can find him riding his motorcycle with his wife and friends and he also enjoys target practice. Willis retired from Energizer Battery in Asheboro after 42 years and is enjoying every minute of retirement. He is a member of Dover Baptist Church.  He also has been singing lead in a duet for over 40 years.  

Chris Monroe has proudly served families as a funeral assistant at Phillips Funeral Home since July of 2022. A native of Eagle Springs, Chris works as a guidance counselor at North Moore High School. He attends and is a member at Bensalem Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Eagle Springs. Chris’ hobbies include church work, spending time with family, baking, and traveling. 

JJ Moore is a Licensed Funeral Director, a 2009 graduate of Fayetteville Technical Community College in their Funeral Service program. He is a resident of Robbins in the Spies Community in Moore County. He is happily married to wife Jo Ann for over 50 years. They have 3 children, 3 Grandchildren, and 2 Great Grandchildren. He is member of Brown’s Chapel Christian Church in Robbins, where he serves as Deacon, Sunday School Superintendent, and Cemetery Director. JJ is also a Mason, at Elise Lodge #555 in Robbins, where he is the treasurer. He also is a Charter Member of Northern Moore Lions Club in Robbins. JJ also is well known for being on radio stations, JoyFM, WYTR, WCSE, and WGWR. He has also been a licensed Insurance agent since 1976. He feels his job as a Preneed Funeral Director is to help families plan for their funeral with peace of mind and eliminate the worry of how they are going to pay for those expenses. In his free time, he loves to spend time with his family, and travel.

Jim Pendell began his career with Pugh Funeral Homes and New Hope Memorial Gardens in March of 2005. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and spent his childhood years in and around that area. Upon graduation from Era Christian Academy in 1985 he came to Randleman NC to follow his heart, and in September of 1986 he married Tonya Ferguson. Together they have two children, a daughter Natalie, and son James. Their granddaughters are the joy of his life. Jim enjoys family time, collecting Craftsman tools and cooking BBQ. Jim and Tonya attend Back Creek Friends Meeting. You may find Jim at one our locations making improvements or in a cemetery opening or closing a grave.

Faye was born and raised here in Asheboro.  After graduating, she worked at Bossong Hosiery Mill for over 7 years and then went on to numerous positions in Randolph County including March Furniture, BB&T Bank, and Randolph Memorial Park.  In 2009, Faye came to Pugh Funeral Home to help grow our New Hope Memorial Gardens.  In her spare time, she has won many trophies for her bowling skills and when her grandchildren were younger, she enjoyed roller skating with them.  Her favorite vacation now is to go on cruises.  She has already been on 7 cruises and plans to take more. Faye spends most of her free time now with her 2 daughters, 3 grandchildren, 3 great grandchildren and 1 great, great grandchild.

Gentry began working at Pugh Funeral Home in 2017 and quickly transitioned into Superintendent of New Hope Memorial Gardens.  He was born and raised in Asheboro. After graduating from Asheboro High School, Gentry spent 30 years in law enforcement. He is married with 3 children and 3 grandchildren.  Gentry and his wife are members of Cross Road Baptist Church and in his spare time he enjoys hunting and fishing.

Josiah was born and raised in Asheboro.  He was homeschooled throughout his younger years and after graduating high school, he attended Randolph Community College to study Welding Technology. He worked as a welder for various companies locally.  Josiah is married with 2 children and is a member of North Ridge Church in Asheboro.