Obituary of Juanda Pryor

Juanda Rachelle Pryor was born December 1, 1966 in

Washington, DC to Bessie and James Stephens. She attended

Ruth K. Webb Elementary, Hamilton Junior High and graduated

from McKinley Tech High School in 1984. Juanda went on to

attend the School of Nursing at Prince George’s Community

College in 2000, becoming a registered nurse and received her

Masters of Science in 2010 from the University of Phoenix. She

began her career at Children’s National Hospital in 1984, where

she served for 33 years in various positions, recently as Quality

Improvement Advisor.

 

Juanda joined Bethesda Baptist Church as a child, where she

served on the choir and enjoyed lively sermons and music to

soothe her soul while also serving as a Girl Scout. She prioritized

spending time with her family and was especially committed to

them. It gave her great joy to support her family and friends and

she always did so with a smile and great conversation. She was

an active member of her community and was passionate about

advocating for those living with HIV/AIDS through education,

research and most recently through mentorship where she

supported young women making healthy life choices and

improving their tangible life skills. She believed that “if her words

or story can help just one, her tribulations will also have worth.”

On November 23, 2002, Juanda married her husband of 21 years,

Stephen Pryor and was a stepmother to two children, Stephen Jr.

and Timothy Pryor and a grandmother to two children, Adrianna

and Stephen III.

 

Her most beloved pastime was traveling with Stephen, making

memories, sharing experiences and taking great photos! You

would be hard pressed to speak with her and she did not glow

over what loving thing Stephen had done for her. Juanda was an

advocate for enjoying life and often shared her mantra that “life is

too short, so live your BEST life every day!” You wouldn’t be long

into conversation with her before she asked, “So what are you

doing with your life these days?” There are so many things that

will be remembered but one thing that stands out is her genuine

concern and love for each person in her life.

 

Juanda went to be with the Lord on August 7, 2023, in her home

under the care of her husband and mother. Juanda is preceded in

her death by her late father James Stephens. She is survived by

her devoted husband, Stephen Pryor, her mother Bessie

Stephens, her sister Katina Stephens, her niece Ariel Stephens,

her nephew Cortez Stephens, her uncle Charles Stephens, and

her aunts, Linda Stephens and Mary Johnson. She also leaves

behind a host of cousins, in-laws, family and friends. Juanda was

special to all those blessed to be a part of her life and left an

impression with her selfless willingness to help all those she

loved. Juanda was a beloved wife, daughter, sister, grandmother,

aunt, niece, cousin and friend who will be deeply missed.

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