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Ride 4 Evan W Honaker
The Carolinas’ Full Throttle Magazine
(L-R) Matt Morgan, Erin Honaker, Kayla Decker, (brother and sisters)Larry Honaker (dad) Melonie Martin (mom) and in front is Noah Atkins (nephew) By Len “3 Wheel” Montgomery
e have all lost loved ones.
And until they lose us, we will continue to lose loved ones. It is always sad and difficult to let go of those we love most. But we honor their memories in the retelling of their exploits and adventures. And that is what happened on the Memorial Run for Evan Honaker on Saturday, March 27, 2021. I arrived at Cox’s Harley-Davidson that morning around 10am. There was already a good size crowd forming. The dealership had sectioned off the front parking area for riders that day to line up and get registered. There were doughnuts, coffee and water, memorial t-shirts and a DJ keeping things upbeat. No sooner had I registered I was spotted by Evan’s mom. Melonie Martin and I had been friends in school, but not seen each other in many, MANY years. Don’t ask how many (there’s no need to embarrass us about our age). But it was so good to see her, though different circumstances would have been preferential. Melonie introduced me to Evan’s dad, Larry “Buc” Honaker and their three other children. They were all thankful for the huge show of love for Evan. But let me take a step back and tell you a bit about why we were all gathered. On Christmas night, 2020, Evan was shot and killed trying to defend his friend who had been stabbed 12 times. The scripture, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13 NKJV)
comes to mind. Evan’s mother recounted the event for me as follows. “Evan had gone to a party with a friend who had a confrontation with two brothers. His friend got stabbed 12 times and was left for dead (thankfully he did survive). Evan was trying to defend his friend when one of the two brothers pulled a gun and shot him twice. This happened in Davidson County (2700 block of Friendship Ledford Rd). Evan’s friends picked him up and put him in his car to take him to get medical attention. They made it about a mile down the road before law enforcement stopped them. Someone had called 911. Sadly, Evan died in the backseat of his car, on the side of the road, never making it to the hospital. Seven eyewitnesses all told the same story, that Evan was only trying to protect his friend who had already been stabbed. The brothers were questioned and released, claiming selfdefense.” To date no charges have been filed. Evan was a top-notch auto technician. He loved riding his Harley- Davidson, going mudding on four wheelers, dirt bikes, and Razors (his brother Matt is in a Razor riding group). Of course, the muddier he got; the more Evan loved it. According to Melonie, Evan had a little crooked smile (his signature). She called it his goofy smile. He loved playing pranks on others. In September 2020 his siblings and friends were all terrorized by Evan and the crab he had found on the beach. He chased them all around all night. Continued On Page 20
