Christopher Wilkins

February 14, 1973 - February 9, 2022
Christopher Wilkins

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Christopher Wilkins, of Flat Rock, NC passed away on February 9, 2022 after an eight and a half year battle with brain cancer.  He was a genius in architecture, a lover of LEGO, and a skilled cornhole player.

Christopher was born in Manhattan, NY, and spent much of his childhood in Hendersonville, NC.  His late father, George Wilkins, Jr. worked at the Flat Rock Playhouse with many friends, including Christopher’s future wife, Malisia.  Later, George would be the one to introduce the two.  In May of 2005, Christopher and Malisia married, surrounded by their Flat Rock Playhouse family.

Christopher attended Clemson University, where he received his Master’s degree in Architecture in May 2012.  He and Malisia continued to live in South Carolina before moving to Redlands, CA where Christopher was hired as a Geospatial Architect with Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI).  His official title was Senior Product Engineer, but unofficially he was known as the Computer Generated Architecture (CGA) Ninja.

Christopher and Malisia returned to Flat Rock, NC in December of 2017.  Here, they settled next door to their family from the Flat Rock Playhouse. Christopher continued to work for ESRI.  He absolutely loved his job and continued to work up until he was unable- a mere seven days prior to his death.  His boss said that his loss left a “gaping hole” in the company, but “his legacy will remain strong.”

Christopher is preceded in death by his father, George Wilkins Jr. (Hendersonville, NC). He leaves behind his wonderful wife, Malisia of seventeen years (Flat Rock, NC). He also leaves behind his mother Rebecca Alexander Blake (Hendersonville, NC); a sister, Sarah Carswell (Oregon); a brother, Michael Carswell (Hendersonville, NC); and a best friend-brother, Cris “No-H” Mabry (Hendersonville, NC).  In addition, Christopher also leaves behind his loving Flat Rock Playhouse family, his ESRI co-workers, Smoof, Mr. Mouse, Malisia’s cat Squeezy that allowed his presence, and $40,000 in student loans.

There will be a small, private gathering to celebrate the life of Christopher.  In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Flat Rock Playhouse.


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  • December 10, 2022
    Hai Blad says:
    what a great website!!! this help me so much!!! thank u so much!

  • December 09, 2022
    Caryl Loadholt says:
    what a great website!!! this help me so much!!! thank u so much!

  • November 08, 2022
    Joe McNeill says:
    I am shocked and saddened to learn of Chris's passing. We were partners and friends in graduate school while at Clemson. Chris was, as others have also shared, a damn genius. We worked on a couple of group projects together and it became abundantly clear that none of them were challenging for Chris like they were for me. As we were both West Coast-ophiles, we chose a random site on the Oregon coast for an architectural design project (I had never been to Oregon, Chris had already had a life in Cali). Now, I live in Portland, Oregon and drive by that site on the Oregon Coast and always think about Chris and how he carried our project together. We shared espresso at his home in Clemson from his big ass commercial espresso machine which, if I remember correctly, was plucked from his former cafe that he and Malisia owned and ran together. In his tiny house, tucked behind a brick chimney, this behemoth of commercial Italian machinery sat on a countertop, taking up most of the kitchen. Chris and Malisia were generous, interesting, and not at all like anyone else at Clemson. I admired Chris greatly. He was funny, humble, and a beautiful soul. I am so glad to have known him and offer my deepest condolences to Malisia and his family. Although we lost touch over the years, I find it comforting to know, without a doubt, that he is the type of person who people never forget, as evidenced by my sentiments. RIP, Chris. You were a great human.

  • February 17, 2022
    Jonathan Robertson says:
    One of the world’s coolest humans. Thank you for sharing your chill vibes and your intelligence with us all.

  • February 17, 2022
    Pamela Alexander says:
    Oh, our Christopher, such a sweet soul. He will be terribly missed. Thank you to Malisia for her love and care for him throughout their joyous times and through this most difficult journey for them both.