Priscilla Elzie Burns

The Homegoing Services for Priscilla Elzie-Burns is Saturday, September 5, 2026 at 11:00 AM at Murphy Ebenezer Baptist Church on 1966 Ebenezer Road, Waynesboro, GA 30830.

Priscilla Elzie Burns was a woman of faith, family, strength, discipline, and unwavering devotion to the lives she touched. Her life was a testament to the power of a praying mother, the importance of education, and the enduring legacy created through love, sacrifice, and example. She was born on October 7, 1937, in New Ellington, South Carolina, the elder of two children born to the union of Fred Brinkley Elzie, Sr. and Irene Powell Elzie. She and her beloved younger brother, Fred Brinkley Elzie, Jr., were educated in the Augusta-Richmond County School System.

 At an early age, Priscilla accepted Christ as her personal Savior and was baptized at Murphy Ebenezer Baptist Church. Her faith remained a cornerstone throughout her life. She later united with Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Augusta, Georgia, under Christian experience, where she faithfully worshipped and sang in the choir until declining health prevented her from continuing. Her relationship with God was not simply something she professed—it was a foundation upon which she built her family and her life. 

Priscilla was united in marriage to Wyatt Burns, and together they were blessed with four children. For the majority of her children’s formative years, she devoted herself wholeheartedly to the sacred work of motherhood and homemaking. She poured her time, energy, wisdom, and love into creating a home where faith, education, discipline, and excellence were not merely encouraged, but expected. 

Priscilla understood early that education was one of the greatest gifts she could give her children. She believed that learning began long before a child ever entered a classroom. With a treasured family chalkboard - an heirloom that remains in the family today - she taught each of her children their letters, numbers, reading, and writing by the age of four or five. When they entered Head Start and kindergarten, her children were already prepared to learn and eager to excel. Her commitment to education never wavered. She and Wyatt challenged their children to bring home nothing less than excellence, turning report cards, household responsibilities, and even saving money into spirited family competitions. Regardless of age or grade level, achievement was celebrated, and hard work was rewarded. Through those lessons, Priscilla taught her children that excellence was not about competing against one another -it was about discovering what they could become. 

Priscilla’s influence reached far beyond her immediate family. She was active in her church, her community, and the PTA, where her dedication to children and education earned her the distinction of being selected as Queen of the Richmond County PTA. 

But perhaps her greatest community distinction was one no organization could bestow: she was the neighborhood mom. The neighborhood children knew that Priscilla’s home was a place of laughter, activity, guidance, and love. She played Hopscotch, Tag, Mother-May-I, and Hide-and-Go-Seek with the children, creating memories that would remain with them long after childhood had passed. She was not simply raising her own children; in many ways, she helped nurture an entire generation. 

Following the death of her beloved husband, Wyatt, Priscilla entered the workforce and began a new chapter of her life. She became gainfully employed with the Richmond County Board of Education, where she dedicated an extraordinary thirty-five years of service before retiring. On Thursday, August 20, 2026, Priscilla Elzie Burns peacefully transitioned from this earthly life. Though her presence will be deeply missed, the lessons she taught, the love she gave, and the values she instilled will continue to live through the generations that follow her. 

She was preceded in death by her parents, Fred Brinkley Elzie, Sr. and Irene Powell Elzie; her beloved husband, Wyatt Burns; her only sibling, Fred Brinkley Elzie, Jr.; and her cherished grandson, Siddiq Alim Burns. She leaves to cherish and carry forward her remarkable legacy, her four beloved children: Bernard (Brenda) Burns, Anthony Wayne Burns, Abigal Burns, and Milton J. Burns; her three surviving grandchildren, Salim Qawi Burns, Khayri Hasan Amir Burns, and Morgan Amira Burns; two nephews, Darryl (Barbara) Elzie and Fred Brinkley Elzie III; great-nephew Jordan Elziee; and a host of extended family members, friends, church family, former neighbors, and all those whose lives were blessed by knowing her.