Celebrating the Phenomenal Life of Gwendolyn Marie Price “Wendy” July 14, 1950 – February 29, 2024 Saturday, March 16, 2024 Family Hour: 10:00 a.m. Service of Victory:11:00 a.m. The Transformation Church of Jesus Christ 5150 Baltimore National Pike | Baltimore, MD 21229 Dr. Monroe R. Saunders, Jr. - Presiding Bishop Pastors Jacqueline Johnson & Janice Smith - Co-Officiants
Order of Celebration Co-Officiants Pastor Jacqueline Johnson & Pastor Janice Smith MUSICAL PRELUDE ………………………………………………..…….……………… The Celebration Chorale OPENING HYMN …………………………………………………….………… “Hold To God’s Unchanging Hand” A TIME OF PRAYER Prayer of Thanksgiving & Comfort ………………………………………………………… Bishop Lewis Payne The Lord’s Prayer ……………………………………………………………………… Mrs. Stacey Atwater Jones The Choral Response ……………………………………………..…………………… The Celebration Chorale MUSICAL SELECTION …………………………………………………………………… The Celebration Chorale SACRED READINGS Old Testament Readings - Proverbs 31: 10-31 and Isaiah 43:1-5 ………………………… Bishop Robert Johnson New Testament Reading - 1st Corinthians 13 ……………………………………………… Rev. Emma Jean Leak MUSICAL SELECTION …………………………………………………………………… The Celebration Chorale VERY BRIEF WORDS OF COMFORT FROM OUR ECUMENICAL COMMUNITY (Respectfully 2 minutes or less): Elder Ernell Lawrence, The Transformation Church Dr. Donna Saunders, RSO Faith and Health Ministry Rev. Dr. Marlene Mitchell, Falls Road AME Church Bishop C. Guy Robinson, Tabernacle of The Lord Church MUSICAL SELECTION …………………………………………………………………… The Celebration Chorale SPECIAL SENTIMENTS FROM HER CIRCLE OF SISTERS (Respectfully 2 minutes or less) First Lady Winsome Saunders Mrs. Joyce Ward Ms. Paullette Fung Mrs. Beverly Grace Mrs. Barbara Mobley MUSICAL SELECTION …………………………………………………………………… The Celebration Chorale REFLECTIONS & TRIBUTES FROM HER FAMILY (Respectfully 2 minutes or less) Representing her “In-Loves (laws)” Dr. Mabel Lake Murray & Mrs. Cheryl Weatherford Representing her Cousins General William “Kip” Ward Representing her Grandchildren Miss Jaxen Price & Geoffrey M. Price Representing her Children Mr. Geoffrey Price Representing her Siblings Mr. Michael Thomas VERY SPECIAL TRIBUTE …………………………………………………………………… Mr. Thaddeus Price, Jr. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & READING OF THE OBITUARY ……………………………… Ms. Doresa Harvey Wendy’s Words SERMONIC SELECTION………………………………………………………………… Elder Tia Jones Boynton EULOGISTIC MESSAGE ……………………………………………………………… Dr. Monroe R. Saunders, Jr. Presiding Bishop of The United Church of Jesus Christ (Apostolic) BENEDICTION RECESSIONAL
We Called Her Wendy On Friday, July 14, 1950 the late Wallace and Hilda Thomas welcomed their beautiful first-born daughter into the world! This beautiful bundle of joy was a true blessing from God and thus she was called Gwendolyn meaning “blessed.” And with two amazing grandmothers who were both named Marie, the world was introduced to GWENDOLYN MARIE THOMAS. Although her mother loved the beautiful name she had so intentionally given her, it would rarely be heard and instead replaced by the nickname she preferred – Wendy! “They tell me” Wendy quickly became more than her mother’s first born, she became her little confidant, and big sister to all the little Thomas’ who arrived soon thereafter. Her brother Mike fondly recalls the loving, kind, and most gentle way that his big sister so tenderly cared for him by beating him up on a regular basis. But aside from those gentle sessions—correcting little brother Mike—Wendy was nothing short of a lady epitomized with grace and refinement. Taking after her grandmothers, she loved the finer things in life, beautiful clothes, gorgeous hats and shoes, gourmet chocolates, and fine dining. From Cherry Hill and Calverton Heights to the Halls of Western High School, everyone knew and loved her elegance, beauty and most infectious smile. At a young age she wed the late Oakley Bailey and from this union her firstborn son Ray entered the world. And with the birth of this 6-month premature 3-pound baby boy she discovered her greatest role in life. Wendy became the ultimate MOTHER! In 1973 Wendy married the recently deceased Thaddeus Price, Sr. Not long thereafter she, along with her mother and siblings were drawn to the incomparable ministry of the late Chief Apostle Monroe R. Saunders, Sr. and by 1974 she was baptized in Jesus’ Name, filled with the Holy Ghost and had made the Transformation Church of Jesus Christ (formerly First United Church) her home! In fact, seeing Wendy, her Mother Hilda Thomas, and Sister Valerie Dease strut into church together each Sunday morning with a smile became a bit of a Transformation Church tradition! She would later describe that era to me as one of the greatest seasons of her life! She married the absolute love of her life, Thaddeus Sr., she fell deeply in love with the lover of her soul, The LORD Jesus Christ, and she began multiplying in Motherhood. Speaking of multiplying, Wendy and Thaddeus were quite fruitful as they produced, and reproduced, and reproduced some more. One day they decided that with so many little reproductions under the roof, Wendy would leave her long standing career with the government and begin a new career as a full time Homemaker! And Wendy became the “Neighborhood Mom,” ultimate school volunteer, parent helper to all in need and President of not one, not two, but three different school PTA groups simultaneously. She became so engrossed in her role of Motherhood, parenting and serving that she gained a new nickname and the lasting handle “Ms. PTA”! She eventually earned her first degree in early childhood education. And once she supported five of her children in receiving their degrees from her beloved Morgan State University, they in turn watched with tear filled eyes as she proudly donned that orange and blue and made one of her dreams come true. But with all that could be said about this amazing woman we called Wendy, one word bests sums her up, LOVE! I can think of no other human who better epitomized the word Love. Our Wendy walked in compassion, generated grace, magnified mercy, and lived in faith, was generous to a fault, and gave all that she had. Wendy was self-LESS beyond measure, loved unconditionally, supported others with fervor, followed peace with all; she walked, talked, and thought like JESUS! Without question, she was the apple of God’s eye! On leap year day our beloved Wendy left this body and returned to GLORY! And in the presence of her Lord, she has reunited with her beloved husband Thaddeus L. Price, Sr., son Raymont, Parents, Sisters, Grandparents and the cloud of sainted witnesses cheering her remaining loved ones on. And left here to grieve our loss as we celebrate her life and memory, are a host of friends, cousins, nieces, nephews, godchildren and loved ones including her brothers and sisters in love Mr. Luther Dease, Ms. Michelle Smith, Ms. Jerri Thomas, Dr. Iantha Tucker, Dr. Jannette Dates (Victor), Dr. Mabel Murray (Ted), Mrs. Cheryl Weatherford (Daniel), Brothers Mr. Cornell Thomas, (Margaret), Mr. Rodney Thomas (Zina), Mr. Bradley Thomas (Cissy), Mr. Michael Thomas, Grandchildren, Dylan Horton, Jaxen Price, Dallas Horton, Jadaya Price, Devin Singh III, and Geoffrey M. Price. Finally, her children: Oladipo J. - the son she chose- Justin, the last she bore, Jenae – the daughter she desired, Jason – the son who bears her beloved husband’s image, Geoffrey – her rebel with the most tender and caring heart, then there’s me, Thaddeus Jr. She was the Queen of my heart, and I served her with all I could and lived to make her smile. We Called her Wendy My father called her “Sweetsie” Most Siblings Called her Mommy Gwendora to Raymont, and Geoffrey simply called her M” I called her “My Lambchop” But now she’s returned to the one who first called her DAUGHTER! In GLORY we shall meet her again!
Tributes Dear M’, You were my mother, # 1 girl, and most of my best friend. Words don’t exist to express how much I love and miss you. The only comfort I have is KNOWING I will see you again. Your “Soldier” Child, Geoffrey At a time when I felt most lonely, lost, and undeserving of love, you swooped in and called me your own. And I know, unequivocally, that the love of God is real because you’ve ceaselessly manifested that in its majesty. With so much to express that can’t be enveloped by the words on this page, I’ll take a few words from a trusted hymn: “All the way my Savior leads me,” and I’m so privileged that he led me to you. That He chose you for me. And, as we lay you to rest, I just want to thank you for choosing me back. Jesus, indeed, doeth all things well. Love, Dipo A Legacy of Love Everything that I am and everything I hope to be, is because you have unconditionally loved me. The most phenomenal gift you gave me was being an amazing a mother and introducing me to God. You were the epitome of strength, faith, determination, and your unwavering love is what we will cherish most about your Legacy. You never felt sorry for yourself and even when you had very bad days, I found your positivity to be somewhat odd. You were a true fighter who rarely complained about your illness and always knew God was by your side. You expressed to me over and over you were ok and you truly wanted to bless others with your testimony. I would ask you often, Mommy, what will I do without you, my hero, my cheerleader, my ultimate favorite guide. You reminded me constantly that true love never dies, and you would always be with me even when you went to glory. You were the wind beneath my wings, such a beautiful spirit inside and out. Memories created and wisdom shared will continue to guide me along the way. Your final wish was for me to “keep going” and I will certainly do that without a doubt. I will hold you in my heart forever and a day, knowing I too will be okay. I Will Love You Forever - Jenae I know everyone says they have the best Mother, but you truly were! You were patient, you were kind, you always gave the best advice, you didn’t judge, nor did you complain, and you always showed up. No matter how tired you were you were there and not just for me but all of us, and our friends too. You were a mother to everyone. I can hear you singing now, “Wake up, wake up, get outta bed, get up, get you sleepy head...”as you did every morning growing up getting us ready for school. You had the best energy, and it was continuous, and although I certainly didn’t want to get out of bed you made it that much easier. I surely wasn’t a morning person and I remember countless convos with you about my morning attitude. But nevertheless, you hugged and kissed us every morning and told us how much you loved us. I didn’t realize until I started teaching that I would meet many students like the younger me, but only now I was the one encouraging and giving out morning hugs. The older I became the more I saw you in me. You would drag us to church every Sunday and although we were late every Sunday, we still made it. We would always sit all the way in the back because there were no other seats but when the spirit hit you it hit. You would get up and scream, cry, worship, and honestly at the time I didn’t know what was going on, but you were teaching me how to be a worshipper. Now that’s me every Sunday, screaming, crying, and worshipping. You introduced us to God, and you lived that life. You would often tell us, I love you, but God loves you so much more, Remember you are blessed, and you’re a blessing.” I remember a few weeks ago we were at the hospital, and you said, “Justin I never told you how proud I am of you”. I couldn’t understand how you could be going through what you were, and you were still speaking positively into us. I didn’t know then, but I know now I needed to hear that from you Mommy. Thank you! Mommy, I am truly broken that I will no longer physically see you or be able to call you and ask for your advice, but I rejoice in knowing that you are no longer suffering and now with the King of Kings. Ma you fought so hard, and you were resilient. You never complained even on your weakest day. I always knew you were an angel walking this earth, and now you’re my angel above. I love you Mommy and will carry you with me forever. Thanks for giving me the best life ever, I was complete because of you, now I strive to be half of the person you were. Your last few days when I went to see you, I would recite Psalms 23, as I knew this was one of your favorites. At this time, you were hardly speaking but you would be trying to say it with me, well now I know you speaking it loud. ....”Surely goodness and mercy shall follow You all the days of your life, and you are dwelling in the house of the Lord forever”. Not too long ago you said “I saw Heaven and it’s beautiful!” I know where you are and it’s no doubt in my mind I will see again.....you are always with us because true love never dies. Thanks for being you! Mommas Boy Forever Your Baby Boy, Justin
Interment Garrison Forrest Veterans Cemetery 11501 Garrison Forest Road Owings Mills, Maryland Tuesday, March 19, 2024 11:30 a.m. Pallbearers Mr. Geoffrey Price Dr. Bradley Thomas Jr. Mr. Jason Price Mr. Geoffrey M. Price Mr. Oladipo J. Adeuyan Mr. Devin Singh III Honorary Pallbearers Mr. Thaddeus Price, Jr., Mr. Justin Price, Cousins & Nephews Acknowledgements The family wishes to express its deepest gratitude and gratefully acknowledges the many acts of kindness shown during this most difficult season. We would especially like to thank Bishop and Lady Monroe R. Saunders, Jr. Elder Debbie Boone, Elder Stanley LeSane, Elder Jason Ambush, Sis. Donna Lambert and the entire Transformation Church of Jesus Christ (Apostolic) family. Pastors Jacqueline Johnson, Janice Smith and all of our program contributors for your unwavering support. To the Family of Singers, Musicians and Artists who have voluntarily stepped in to help us honor our mother we are grateful beyond words. Thank You Antoinette Marie and Pastor Regina Davis for ensuring perfection! Although in our humanity we mourn the loss of our beloved matriarch, we do not grieve as others for we know that she is “present with The LORD” and awaits us in Glory! Your acts of kindness during this season are a testament that the Lord has already made provisions to comfort and attend to us. When each of you shared your love with us, you kindly served as God’s hands and feet in earth, and for that we are blessed. Professional Services Entrusted to: MARCH LIFE TRIBUTE CENTER The Incredible Ikkeia Harrell, Director 5616 Old Court Road | Windsor Mill, MD 21244 (410) 655-0110 Please scan qr code for a digital program. www.timeprinters.com | 410-566-3005