Dennis Wayne Forrest transitioned to eternal rest while at his home in Atlanta, Georgia on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Dennis was born on September 13, 1957, in Charleston, South Carolina, the second of three children born to the late Moses George Forrest and Celestine Dennis Forrest.

Dennis was educated in the Diocese of Charleston Catholic Schools system and graduated from Bishop England High School in 1974. He played the saxophone in the Bishop England marching band and was a wide receiver on the “Battling Bishops” football team. Growing up, Dennis spent many summers working with his dad, a respected home-builder in Charleston. He developed a love and passion for construction from the summers working at Elcco Erecting, the company owned by his parents. This experience led him to Georgia Institute of Technology where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Architecture and Building Management.

His early years in construction included the expansion of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and the MARTA Airport station prior to his tenure as resident architect at the New York office for the architecture firm of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. There Dennis was the resident architect for the construction team of the Georgia-Pacific Center in Atlanta, a 52-story steel frame building. Dennis served as Facilities Manager for Georgia-Pacific Corporation for over 30 years managing more than 2.8 million square feet of space throughout the United States and Japan. He then leveraged more than three decades of construction and architectural experience and facilities management as Vice President of Integrated Facilities Management for The Burks Companies of Atlanta, Georgia. His biggest achievement was managing a project at Howard University that delivered tremendous cost savings while improving the quality of life and educational experience for students, staff and administration overall.

In addition to Dennis’s love of “big buildings”, as he would remind us often, he loved football!

A huge college football fan, he and Kerri would go over the NCAA stats all season long, rooting for Georgia Tech and Clemson. And, just like his father, he was a life-long Dallas Cowboys fan, to the chagrin of many.

Dennis loved fast cars and watching NASCAR. He was passionate about golf. He enjoyed nature, listening to the fishing and gardening shows on the radio and being regularly entertained by the birds and squirrels fighting over the bird feeder on his porch as well as his Siamese fighting fish. Dennis’s favorite fishing spot was the Florida Keys. He loved to eat and cook Asian cuisine - he would simmer a pot of Pho’ on a Saturday afternoon - and was also quite the Southern cook. One of his specialties was oyster, shrimp, and turkey neck gumbo.

Dennis loved his family. He was proud of his “baby sister” Kerri and would tell stories of when he had to babysit her as a little girl. He was crazy about his nieces, Antrell and Ashley, and grandnieces Celeste, Sydney, and Alyssa. He was amazed with Alyssa's gardening skills - “she’s ready for construction” - and interested in all of the girls' activities.

Dennis also never met a stranger and loved his wide network of friends. Thursday evenings were reserved for his favorite restaurant, Pacific Rim, where he and his best friend George became fixtures as "two old Black guys at the bar," sharing stories and laughter with countless friends over the years.

Dennis will always be remembered as a cherished son, a beloved brother and uncle, and a steadfast friend of many. His charismatic personality and sense of humor will be missed by all who knew him.

Dennis was preceded in death by his father; Moses George Forrest; grandmothers: Janie Walton Forrest (paternal) and Virginia Myers Dennis (maternal); grandfathers:Coleman Forrest (paternal) and Benjamin Dennis ( maternal); favorite grand aunt: Isabelle Rivers; aunts: Melvinia Haynes, Naomi Alston, Martha Smalls, Ethel Brown, Sarah Bennett, Hattie Biggs (paternal) Eloise Williams, Sarah Morehead, Rena Green, Florence Dennis (maternal); uncles: Joseph Walton, Coleman Forrest(paternal) Benjamin Dennis, Alfonzo Dennis (maternal).

Dennis leaves loving family to celebrate his memory including his mother Celestine Dennis Forrest; his sisters: Richardene Forrest –Thweatt and Kerri Lyn Forrest; his nieces: Antrell Thweatt -Kelley (Steven) and Ashley Thweatt (Jeremy Hunter) ; grandnieces: Celeste Jada Thweatt-Kelley, Sydney Lea Thweatt–Kelly and Alyssa Mae Thweatt- Hunter;and aunt: Ethel Poole. He is survived by a host of family (cousins), relatives, friends and associates. 

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