Lexington graphic novelist honors 2 children killed in May double homicide

When Shawn Pryor received a text saying 13-year-old Deon and 5-year-old Skyler Williams were murdered in May, the author said he cried for two days over of the pain of their deaths.

“It hurt. It hurt because no child deserves to die. Deon didn’t deserve that. Skyler, you know, his little sister didn’t deserve that, and they had so much life to live,” Pryor said. “It hurt me in my soul. It still hurts me to this day.”

Deon and Skyler Williams were killed May 2 in an alleged “stabbing/cutting incident” off of Rogers Road, according to law enforcement. Their mother, Nikki James, has been charged.

Pryor, who works as a computer support specialist at the University of Kentucky during the day and is a writer by night, began volunteering in April for a class focusing on comics in creative writing.

Sponsored by the Carnegie Center for Literacy & Learning, the class was held Saturdays at Winburn Middle School. Along with artist Bryce Oquaye, Pryor was asked to teach the children about comics, creative writing and more.

Creating with comics

It was in that class Pryor met Deon, who Pryor said enjoyed the creative process of making comics and creating his own stories.

“I would talk to him sometimes, ask him about what he was writing about in his work in this little notebook and what kind of comics he wanted to create and things of that nature,” Pryor said.

Pryor said he bought Deon some Manga, a style of Japanese comic books and graphic novels that Deon loved, in hope of helping with his creative process.

“He was an absolute delight and he was a light,” Pryor said of Deon. “For me, it taught me how important it is to interact with the youth and, you know, in our communities.”

Pryor said his favorite memory of Deon is their last conversation, which took place after Pryor sat next to him outside. Deon asked him what superpower he’d like to have, and when Pryor asked him the same, Deon responded he’d want to have powers to control the weather like Marvel character Storm.

Deon told Pryor he was still writing in his notebook, and Pryor said the boy gestured to another teacher who helped with the class. Deon talked each day of how he showed this teacher all of his ideas, Pryor said.

The class was going on hiatus for a week before its scheduled return in May. Pryor said he told Deon he’d see him the week after next, and Deon was excited.

“That was the last time I got to talk to him and that conversation still sticks with me, and it’s never going to leave me either,” Pryor said. “I just want everybody to know how special of a kid Deon was.”

The importance of community outreach

Pryor has been a writer for around 15 years and has talked with grade and middle schools in recent years about the creative process of writing some of his books.

Lexington graphic novelist honors 2 children killed in May double homicide

His experience in volunteering with the Saturday workshop was different from past school visits, as he saw the same group of children every single week.

Pryor said his involvement with Winburn Middle School became “extremely important” to him.

“It really touched me, and it made me realize the importance of being a part of a community and helping the community,” he said. “It’s something I feel that more of us need to do. We need to interact with these kids. We need to let them know how much we care for them, how much we want to help their dreams grow.”

Pryor said he felt people should be more active, participate in after-school programs and have a greater presence in students’ lives.

“Being and talking with Deon and being there for him while he was with us showed me that, and I miss that I can’t do that anymore,” Pryor said.

He said students may have questions about adults’ careers and their life paths.

Volunteering with after-school programs allows adults to help teachers in attending to students who may have things in their lives they don’t understand, Pryor said.

“For some kids, the school is their safe haven. For some kids, that’s where they get their meals, that’s where they’re able to have shelter because sometimes home isn’t a home for kids. Sometimes school is their home,” Pryor said. “For Deon, our class that he was a part of, that was home for him, and he loved it.”

Pryor described Deon as being “very quiet” when he first came to the small class with around 12 students.

“He really started to just break out of his shell” after a few weeks, Pryor noted.

The author said he always wants to remind people his efforts to preserve Deon and Skyler’s memory is about the children and not about him or his writing career.

“This is about Deon and his little sister, Skyler, and how I hope that we can keep their memories alive and let people know how wonderful of children they were,” Pryor said.

Preserving Deon and Skyler’s memory

In honor of the two children, Pryor worked with the school’s librarian, Rey Gonzalez, to create Deon and Skyler’s Corner in the school library at Winburn Middle School.

Pryor said he told Gonzalez at a balloon release for the two deceased children he wanted to still be a part of the community at Winburn Middle School, beyond the comics class he was teaching.

He proposed raising money to provide graphic novels and manga for the school and establishing a plaque to put on a bookshelf in dedication of the two children.

Pryor then set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the project with an initial goal of $1,500. The campaign ended in seven days, and in that time, Pryor said a total of $3,500 was raised.

Pryor said the additional money made it possible to help other children at the middle school.

“Say for instance, if they (the students) need a ping pong table for after school recreational. We can get that now. You know, if the kids need new basketball uniforms, we can get that now,” Pryor said. “It’s just a way of continuing to help the kids at Winburn.”

Pryor said he hasn’t been able to talk to students to see their response to the project given that the school year is over.

“I hope that the kids like what we’re trying to do, and what we are doing in keeping Deon and Skyler’s memory and spirit alive because, also, Deon was a very giving kid,” Pryor said. “He’s very giving and kind, and the least we can do is continue to spread that kindness to others, and I hope that the kids get that and understand that and pass that along.”

Deon’s impact on Pryor

Pryor said Deon’s story will be with him for the rest of his life.

“It’s taught me that for what I do for a living as a writer, that there are a lot of kids that are very creative or want to learn how to create things, and I want to be a part of that,” Pryor said. “If I can be a stepping stone to help them get to where they want to go in life, then for me, that’s wonderful.”

He said even if some decide later in life they want to do something besides writing and creating, he’d like to be a part of their process.

“I just want to give these kids hope because a lot of kids don’t see that. They don’t know the world outside their own window. They don’t know that there’s better things out there for them,” Pryor said.

Pryor said he wants the students he encounters to believe in themselves.

“I want them to try because even if they fail, get back up and we can try it again, and there’s nothing wrong with that,” Pryor said. “I just want them to be able to believe in themselves and start to learn who they are and discover what they want to do.”

Pryor said this experience taught him that Winburn Middle School is where he’s supposed to be for a good period of his life.

“That school is important to me, the teachers are important to me, those kids are important to me, and I can do my best to honor Deon and Skyler by helping them,” Pryor said.

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