Aliya Jalynn Williams

Aliya Jalynn Williams, affectionately known as “Woogie,” was born on Saturday, September 27, 2008, in Jacksonville, Florida to Jason L. Williams and Alicia Sasnett-Williams.

A precocious child, Aliya was an intelligent little girl with boundless curiosity. She became an avid reader at an early age mimicking “Please Baby Please” by Spike Lee and later loving the Junie B. Jones book series by Barbara Park. She began her educational journey at Northside Early Headstart with ECS4Kids (Episcopal Children Services) and later moved to John E. Ford Pre K- 8th English and Spanish Montessori School. She attended Ford through the 5th grade, after which she began to explore music with both the alto and baritone saxophone at LaVilla School of the Arts. While at LaVilla, Aliya traveled with the wind ensemble to Atlanta, Georgia and many other places as she demonstrated her commitment to the development of her skills on the saxophone. While doing so, she maintained her academic performance finishing LaVilla with a 3.8 GPA. Aliya received the LaVilla Directors Award for both the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 academic years. She also made the FMEA Allstate Middle School Band on baritone saxophone in 2022, followed by the alto saxophone in 2023. In addition, Aliya was recognized as the Most Outstanding Musician in Symphonic Band for the 2023-2024 academic year.

After finishing LaVilla, Aliya attended Douglas Anderson School of the Arts where she continued developing her skills by adding the soprano saxophone and the flute. Aliya played in both the Symphonic and the Jazz II Bands, later moving up to the Wind Symphony and Jazz I Bands. Aliya traveled with her fellow musicians playing various venues around the state of Florida, in addition to performing at the Annual Midwest Clinic in Chicago in December 2024, and at the Music for All Festival in Indianapolis, in March of 2025. To continue her musical legacy, Jason and Alicia, in conjunction with Douglas Anderson Band Boosters Inc., have established a scholarship fund to assist students with fair share obligations. Please see the QR code on the rear of the program to donate.

Recognizing an interest in Finance, Aliya pivoted from music and transferred from Douglas Anderson to Riverside High School where she began an internship with the VyStar Academy of Business in June 2025. Aliya worked in both the Riverside High school campus credit union and at the Ortega branch of VyStar. She helped her fellow schoolmates learn about personal finance by assisting them in setting up bank accounts to prepare for their financial future and continued serving her community by helping VyStar Credit Union members maintain theirs. Aliya had also just begun taking dual enrollment classes through FSCJ. Feeding her ambition, Aliya also worked part-time as a cashier for Wingstop at River City Marketplace where she was recognized as Employee of the Month during her very first month there. Aliya’s level of maturity and dependability allowed her to excel as a cashier and as a pilot. She also began training as a shift lead.

When she was a little girl, her dad started calling her “Miss Woogums.” Later shortened to “Woogie,” the nickname affectionately stuck. Aliya loved her family. One of her favorite things to do was to attend family reunions in Jacksonville, Portsmouth, and Northern Virginia, and she was always present at her GG’s house for family gatherings, especially at Thanksgiving where she helped to prepare a massive dinner for family and friends. Any friend that Aliya had, she loved to the highest level. She would defend them and give loving and valuable advice. Aliya touched so many people around her. Her beauty, her kindness, her intellect, and her talents were influential and encouraging to so many people in so many ways.

To hold these memories, Aliya leaves her mom and dad, Alicia Sasnett-Williams and Jason L. Williams. She also leaves an older brother, Jason L. Williams, Jr. (Bri Smith) and their child, Aliya’s niece, Journey.

She is also lovingly remembered by her grandparents, Cheryl aka “GG” Terrell (Tracy) and Horace Sasnett (Geronda). Aliya is preceded in death by grandparents Augusta “Papa Gus” Williams and Lynette Williams. She leaves supportive uncles Bruce Phillips, Gary Eugene Stephens, Emanuel Joseph Ferguson (Charity), Patrick Sasnett, and Johnnie Young, Jr. She also leaves loving Aunts, Vivian Jackson, Angela Tisby, Nicole Marshall, Windy Sasnett, Shree Hardwick (James), Maree Brown (Frederick), Tiffany Terrell, Caressa Howell and Ameilia Morrison (Raymond), along with so many more family members and special friends.

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