Priscilla Lee Packard

1946-2026

Priscilla Lee Packard, 79, of Port Orange, Florida, passed away on March 2, 2026, after a battle with cancer.

Born on July 24, 1946, in Providence, Rhode Island, to Samuel J. and Altha L. Packard, Priscilla was raised with the hum of racing engines ever present in the background. Her father, a racecar driver and one of the founding figures of NASCAR, introduced her to racing early in her life. By elementary school, she was already behind the wheel of a quarter midget, making her way in a sport that rarely made room for girls.

Alongside her sister, Rhoda G. Blackie (Packard), Priscilla became one of the only young female drivers competing throughout the New England Circuit. They were often the only girls on the track, and more often than not, they outran the boys. Fearless and competitive, Priscilla was always racing for number 1.

In 1959, the Packard family relocated to Daytona Beach, where her father began working for NASCAR. Though the move paused her early racing career, the track never truly left her. Decades later, in the 1990s, she returned to competition with the Daytona Antique Auto Racing Association and The Living Legends of Auto Racing. In a full-circle moment that defined her lifelong bond with the sport, her father once again stood beside her, serving as her crew chief and car hauler as she raced vintage midgets with the same grit she carried as a child.

Priscilla graduated from Mainland High School and remained deeply rooted in her community. She worked for the State of Florida before later traveling the NASCAR circuit hauling souvenir trailers and then finally working for Petty Enterprises. She stayed connected to the racing world that shaped her life.

She was preceded in death by her father, Samuel J. Packard (2003), and her mother, Altha Lee Packard (2007).

In honoring Priscilla's wishes, no service will be held. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Seminole County Parrot Rescue, 220 Saunders Trail, Geneva,FL 32732. Donations can also be made via Zelle using their email address: parrotrescues@gmail.com

Priscilla lived her life the way she drove, determined and independent