Former UGA quarterback, gymnast grieve son killed in fire. ‘They really need prayer’
A Georgia family “really needs prayer, right now” after losing its youngest son in a deadly house fire, the family’s pastor said.
Walker Phillips, 10, died in an overnight fire that ripped through his family’s home in Cartersville early Friday, Feb. 11, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported, citing Cartersville fire officials. He was one of former University of Georgia quarterback Cory Phillips and UGA gymnast Courtney Phillips’ three children.
“It’s been a tough few days,” Pastor James Griffin of Crosspoint City Church told WXIA. “Definitely been a tough few days.”
Griffin said the grieving family is leaning on its faith and community for support during this difficult time.
“Everything has been so fresh and so raw,” he told the news station. “This is a family that is loved in this community, and really the biggest need, at this point, has been prayer, and that is what the family has asked for, and that is what the family has communicated they need most.”
Officials were alerted to a fire at the home on Galway Drive at approximately 3 a.m. on Feb. 11, according to a Cartersville Fire Department news release. Crews arrived to find the structure “significantly involved,” and spent several hours battling the flames.
“We attempted an interior fire attack, the fire was so heavy our guys attempted it several times and finally they were just pushed out as a structure started coming down,” Fire Chief Scott Carter said, according to WAGA.
There were four people inside the home at the time, fire officials said, but only three escaped. It’s unclear if there were working smoke alarms in the home.
A 10-year-old male was pronounced dead on scene, officials said.
“This fire is still under routine origin and cause investigation at this time,” Carter told McClatchy News in a statement Monday, Feb. 14. “We have no timetable for the completion of this investigation.”
Cory and Courtney Phillips were out of town when the fire started, multiple news outlets have reported. The couple’s three kids, who are students at North Cobb Christian School in Kennesaw, were under a grandparent’s care at the time, according to the AJC.
Students and staff remembered Walker as a one-of-a-kind student who brought joy to all who knew him.
”Walker is a leader in his class,” said Wendy Titus, lower school principal at North Cobb Christian. “He is tenderhearted and really shines the light of Jesus to others. Just this past fall, he was voted by his classmates as being the student that most displays joy.”
Coach Greg Matta said the fourth-grader had a huge impact on him, adding: “To know Walker was to love Walker.”
“He touched so many people in his short 10 years here on earth, and his memory will continue to touch and impact people for years and years to come,” Matta continued.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Cartersville is about 43 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta.
Cory Phillips played football for the Bulldogs from 1999-2002, while Phillips’ wife, the former Courtney Whittle, was on the UGA gymnastics team from 1997-98.
This story was originally published February 14, 2022 at 10:31 AM with the headline "Former UGA quarterback, gymnast grieve son killed in fire. ‘They really need prayer’."