Juliana Marie Wright, 66, of Columbia, passed away peacefully on January 7, 2024, with her daughters by her side, following a brief battle with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy.

Born in Manhattan, Kansas, she was the daughter of the late James and Kathy Jenkins. She spent the majority of her life in Charleston, South Carolina, graduating from Middleton High School in 1975, eventually moving to Columbia. She was an advocate for higher education, and was so proud to watch both of her daughters, Devon and Kelsey, graduate from Clemson University. Years later, she would go back to school for herself, and graduated with an Associates of Arts from Midlands Technical College.

Better known as Julie, she loved her family and friends fiercely. She was kind, caring, and compassionate. Her compassion extended to animals, as she was an advocate for pet adoption and support of the local ASPCA programs. She would be the first to offer help and never asked for anything in return. You knew how much you meant to her and she would always end a phone call or conversation with "I love you". It was her greatest joy to see the birth of her first granddaughter, Grace Marie Vastano.

Despite her failing health in the last few years, her joy for life and indomitable spirit kept her pushing through.

Juliana is survived by her daughters, Devon (Russ) Vastano and Kelsey Wright; granddaughter, Grace Vastano; brother, Danny Jenkins; sisters, Amy Smith, Leanne Snyder, and Jamie Ries; numerous nieces and nephews; and her life-long friend and father of her children, Charles Wright.

In addition to her parents, she is preceded in death by her sister, Teresa Jenkins.

The memorial service for Juliana will be Sunday, January 14, 2024 at Shives Funeral Home, Trenholm Road Chapel, 7600 Trenholm Road Ext., Columbia, SC, at 2 o'clock. The family will receive friends an hour prior to the service at 1 o'clock.