Obituary of Delores Jean Washington Pratt

At the age of 63, our dearest mother, sister, grandmother, aunt, cousin, and friend, Delores Jean Washington Pratt transitioned peacefully to her heavenly father on January 5, 2023. She will always be remembered as sweet, soft-spoken Delores. She will be sadly missed and always hold a special place in our hearts. Delores was born on October 15, 1959, to the late Ida Mae Harrell and Elvin Washington. When she was a baby, she moved to Trenton, New Jersey to reside with her late grandmother, Mary Harrell. A lot of Delores’s fond childhood memories are split between Trenton and Palmyra, New Jersey. Around the age of 15, she began living with her foster family (Emmanuel/ Helen Skinner) including her two sisters in Palmyra, NJ. She graduated from Palmyra High School in 1977. Following high school, she attended Glassboro State College, presently known as Rowan University. In college, Delores was on the Dean’s list and furthered her love for education. She is also the first college graduate in our family. She graduated from Glassboro State in 1981. After her college years, Delores returned to Palmyra and decided to make it her home. She became an active, faithful member of Saint Paul UAME church. She was previously president of the steward board. Since education has always been top priority for Delores, she went on to share it with others. She became a professional teacher and remained in the career for 30 years. Delores taught in private school for six years and the remainder of her teaching career was spent in the Willingboro School District (24 years). She was even teacher of the year in 2004-2005. Prior to retiring in June 2022, she began seeing her former students return as the parents of her present-day students. She was always delighted to see a former student who went on to succeed in their ​life. Mrs. Pratt, as she is known in the district, was well known and loved for her patience and kindness. Delores is also known for her love of traveling. She enjoyed bus trips to various parts of the US. She also loved to read and shared that love with everyone. While living in Palmyra, she met and married Dawson Pratt Jr. From their union came her only son Dawson Pratt III also known as T.J. T.J. and D-Lo (as he affectionately called her) were like two peas in a pod. He really was the apple of her eye until her sweet grand-daughter Rylie was born. D-Lo changed her name to Grammy and was never the same. She often stated “being Grammy is the best” and “Rylie is her world”. Whenever Rylie was in the room, there was a beautiful smile on Grammy’s face. In December 2014, Delores’s heart disease showed up. That didn’t stop her from becoming an avid supporter of Women’s Heart Month. She developed a T-shirt to “X out heart disease” for Go Red Day. This was included in a Women’s heart Month program at St. Paul U.A.M.E. church on 2/14/15. Delores Jean Washington Pratt succumbed to heart disease on January 5, 2023. She leaves to mourn one son, Dawson Pratt III, his fiancé, Samantha Chicone, and the apple of Grammy’s eye, Rylie Pratt of Delanco, NJ; two sisters: Maddie (Maida) Martinez (Angel) of Clementon, NJ, Barbara Washington of Lindenwold, NJ; one brother: Ulysses Harrell of Delaware; her Goddaughter and niece, Kieana Craig (Quincy), along with a host of other nieces, nephews, family, and friends. Delores was preceded in death by: Ida Mae Harrell, Mary Harrell, Emmanuel Skinner, Helen Skinner, Robert Lee Taylor, Timothy Harrell, Timothy Harrell Jr, and Joyce Taylor.