Ms. Aalayah Alexis Jabiel Jones

Aalayah Alexis Jabriel Jones of Lakeland, Florida, passed away on September 20, 2026, surrounded by family. Funeral Services will be held on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at Turning Point Worship Center, 1400 E. Georgia St., Bartow, FL 33830, with Elder Eugene Kendrick, Officiating. 

Aalayah Alexis Jabriel Jones was born on March 26, 1999, in Lakeland, Florida, to Nikia Jones (deceased) and Alexial Jones.

Aalayah was educated in the Polk County school system and later graduated from Polk State College with a degree in Business Administration. She had promised her mother she would earn that degree, and she worked tirelessly to fulfill her mother's dream for her — even completing assignments from her hospital bed through countless sickle cell crises. While at Polk State, she was an active member of the Student Government Association and was known and loved by everyone on campus.

Fashionable and full of life, Aalayah lit up every room she walked into with her jovial spirit. Friendly and extremely giving, she never met a stranger and was well loved by all who knew her. An excellent dancer with a deep love for musical theater, she could be found singing songs from Hamilton at any given moment.

Aalayah was also a fierce sickle cell advocate, chronicling her journey through personal and educational TikTok videos that touched and inspired many who followed her story.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Nikia Jones; her sister, Suamone Harris-Jones; and her maternal grandmother, Lavonia Leonard.

She leaves to cherish her memory: her beloved partner, Tyree Jamaal Andrews; her father, Alexial Jones, and step-mother, Mildred Jones; her sister, Segal Jones; her brother, Skyesun Harris-Jones; her bonus mom, Latarsha Jennings; her maternal grandfather, Kingsley Titer, and step-grandmother, Jacquelyn Mentor; her paternal grandfather, Johnny Jones, and paternal grandmother, Iola Jones; her aunt, KeAndrea Titer-Abrahams; her great aunt, Neritha Boye Owusu; and a host of loving cousins, other relatives, godmothers and godfathers, co-workers, and friends.

Visitation will be held on Saturday, September 26, 2026, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at Turning Point Worship Center, 1400 E. Georgia St., Bartow, FL 33830.

Arrangements entrusted to Ray Williams Funeral Home, Rhodes & Northern, Owners

www.raywilliamsfuneralhome.com

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