Wendy Dunn
January 1, 1998 - December 22, 2025
Phoenix Corwen Dunn of Nashville, Tennessee, passed away in Contra Costa County, California on December 22, 2025.
Phoenix Dunn was born in Nashville, Tennessee on January 1, 1998 to Wendy Grace Dunn. He was the first New Year’s baby born at Southern Hills Hospital. He lived the majority of his childhood in Westmoreland, Tennessee and Desert Hot Springs, California. As an adult, he traveled and lived all over the country.
Phoenix attended Westmoreland High, Hillsboro High, and Smyrna High Schools in Tennessee, graduating early. He went on to study at Middle Tennessee State University. He worked a variety of odd jobs, while he focused on what he believed to be his true calling: a minister of Jesus Christ.
Phoenix faced great adversity in his short life. He suffered extreme trauma as a young child. He was especially close with his father, spending most every day of his life beside him. Phoenix’s world was destroyed when his father was murdered, less than a month before his fourth birthday. He was never the same. The happy, sweet boy became a quiet, anxious child who rarely smiled. He felt that he, his mother and brother had been abandoned and rejected by family, and he suffered extreme pain over the loss of his dad. That pain never went away.
He traveled to San Francisco, to be close to his mother and brother for the last eight months of his life. He experienced being beaten, being cold and hungry on the streets in the rain, being robbed, cursed and attacked, being arrested, repeatedly hospitalized and forcibly medicated, all the while begging his family and friends for help. His life was tragically cut short three days before Christmas.
Phoenix is survived by his son that he never stopped talking about and missing until the day he died, Phoenix Dunn Jr; his younger brother and best friend, Westley Lyon Dunn; his mother, Wendy Grace Dunn; his second mother and aunt, Corrie Cecil Coleman; and his cousin, Eleanor Coleman. He followed to Heaven his favorite person in the world, Grandmother Jennie Carol Melton, stepfather Ty Brook Toll, his 18-year old childhood dog, Napoleon Dunn, and his beloved babies, pit bulls Ares and Aphrodite.
A special thank-you from our family goes out to Isaiah Lightning Lewis, for his daily love and care of Phoenix during his time in the Bay area.
He was the funniest, craziest, most loving guy his family ever knew, with a beautiful singing voice. In his moments of clarity, he was a shining light that reflected joy to all of us who were close to him. We hurt with him in his darkest moments when his mind was clouded by illness and grief.
He suffered greatly in his time on this Earth, but he never lost his faith or his passion for his savior, Jesus Christ. He never lost his conviction that he would soon be together with both his earthly father and His Heavenly Father. He spoke often of how he looked forward to being reunited with his family in Paradise.
There will be no funeral because we don’t have the money, and nobody wanted to help. No one would have come anyway.
Until we see you again in Heaven Phoenix, we will miss you for the rest of our days. Our lives will never be the same without you. Love, Mama and West.
Phoenix Corwen Dunn of Nashville, Tennessee, passed away in Contra Costa County, California on December 22, 2025.
Phoenix Dunn was born in Nashville, Tennessee on January 1, 1998 to Wendy Grace Dunn. He was the first New Year’s baby born at Southern Hills Hospital. He lived the majority of his childhood in Westmoreland, Tennessee and Desert Hot Springs, California. As an adult, he traveled and lived all over the country.
Phoenix attended Westmoreland High, Hillsboro High, and Smyrna High Schools in Tennessee, graduating early. He went on to study at Middle Tennessee State University. He worked a variety of odd jobs, while he focused on what he believed to be his true calling: a minister of Jesus Christ.
Phoenix faced great adversity in his short life. He suffered extreme trauma as a young child. He was especially close with his father, spending most every day of his life beside him. Phoenix’s world was destroyed when his father was murdered, less than a month before his fourth birthday. He was never the same. The happy, sweet boy became a quiet, anxious child who rarely smiled. He felt that he, his mother and brother had been abandoned and rejected by family, and he suffered extreme pain over the loss of his dad. That pain never went away.
He traveled to San Francisco, to be close to his mother and brother for the last eight months of his life. He experienced being beaten, being cold and hungry on the streets in the rain, being robbed, cursed and attacked, being arrested, repeatedly hospitalized and forcibly medicated, all the while begging his family and friends for help. His life was tragically cut short three days before Christmas.
Phoenix is survived by his son that he never stopped talking about and missing until the day he died, Phoenix Dunn Jr; his younger brother and best friend, Westley Lyon Dunn; his mother, Wendy Grace Dunn; his second mother and aunt, Corrie Cecil Coleman; and his cousin, Eleanor Coleman. He followed to Heaven his favorite person in the world, Grandmother Jennie Carol Melton, stepfather Ty Brook Toll, his 18-year old childhood dog, Napoleon Dunn, and his beloved babies, pit bulls Ares and Aphrodite.
A special thank-you from our family goes out to Isaiah Lightning Lewis, for his daily love and care of Phoenix during his time in the Bay area.
He was the funniest, craziest, most loving guy his family ever knew, with a beautiful singing voice. In his moments of clarity, he was a shining light that reflected joy to all of us who were close to him. We hurt with him in his darkest moments when his mind was clouded by illness and grief.
He suffered greatly in his time on this Earth, but he never lost his faith or his passion for his savior, Jesus Christ. He never lost his conviction that he would soon be together with both his earthly father and His Heavenly Father. He spoke often of how he looked forward to being reunited with his family in Paradise.
There will be no funeral because we don’t have the money, and nobody wanted to help. No one would have come anyway.
Until we see you again in Heaven Phoenix, we will miss you for the rest of our days. Our lives will never be the same without you. Love, Mama and West.
