Obituary

Yolanda Juno Crawford Hayes

December 20, 1948  -  March 15, 2026

Yolanda Juno Crawford (Hayes) was born December 20, 1948, in Bogalusa, Louisiana, to her mother, Earlyne Sellers Crawford. Raised as an "Army Brat" and graduating from high school in Hawaii, she attended Grambling University for her undergraduate degree and received her Master's degree from Michigan State University. While at Grambling, she met Everett Hayes, and they married on November 29, 1969. Jehovah found and drew them both together with cords of love, and they were baptized together at the 1973 "Divine Victories" International Convention in Los Angeles, California.

On March 15, 2026, at the age of 77, Yolanda passed away. She is survived by her husband, Everett L.; her son, Everett Chad; her daughters, Manita and Carlette; her grandchildren-Jamie, Terence, Kiana, Trenton, and Everett Alexander; two brothers and three sisters; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

2 Corinthians 4:7 - "However, we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the power beyond what is normal may be God's and not from us."

The "treasure" referred to in Paul's illustration is the God-given commission, or ministry, to preach the life-giving message of God's Kingdom. The earthen vessels are the frail humans to whom Jehovah has entrusted this treasure. Although they are ordinary people whose imperfect bodies have limitations, God uses them to get the "treasure" to its destination.

Yolanda took that commission seriously by regularly auxiliary pioneering. She preserved the "treasure" by helping numerous sheeplike ones, here and abroad in Ecuador, to get on that road to life, and by tirelessly working to instill the love of Jehovah into her children (both blood and spiritual). Though we now walk without her hand in ours, we carry her lessons, her humor, and her unwavering love for JEHOVAH in everything we do. Mothers are our anchor, our heart, and our home. The world feels dimmer without her light, but she has run her race for life with endurance.