Aaron Pryor honored on his 70th birthday anniversary
By Gabriel F. Cordero
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 22 Oct 2025
Aaron "The Hawk" Pryor was honored by friends and family this past Monday at a party commemorating what would have been his 70th birthday, organized in large part by his son, Aaron Pryor Jr.
Aaron Pryor was born on October 20, 1955, in Over the Rhine, a suburb of Cincinnati. He was one of seven children of Sara Shelery, a strong woman who faced various challenges and obstacles throughout her life, raising Aaron alongside four brothers and two sisters.
After years of suffering from addiction, he was able to confront it and be redeemed by the word of God. For several years, he was a deacon and part of the pastors at the New Friendship Baptist Church and a boxing coach in Cincinnati, training young amateur and professional boxers. He was recognized by authorities and civil society for his example in the fight against drugs, motivating children and young people to stay away from drugs and the dangers of the streets. In 1996, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, and in 1999, he was voted the greatest super lightweight of the 20th century by the Associated Press.
Aaron Pryor died on October 9, 2016, of cardiac arrest. October 2026 will mark 10 years since Pryor's death, at the age of 60, after a long battle with heart failure.
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