Augusta honors Sam Pursley for mission work

Sam Pursley had only volunteered one evening to the Augusta Rescue Mission, but he soon realized he wanted to make a commitment to the place and the homeless men it serves.

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Jackie Ricciardi/Staff

Longtime volunteer Sam Pursley waits at the Open Door Chapel at Augusta Rescue Mission. A building next door bears his name.

Back | Next

Jackie Ricciardi/Staff

Longtime volunteer Sam Pursley waits at the Open Door Chapel at Augusta Rescue Mission. A building next door bears his name.

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Mr. Pursley was a farmer, a father of six, a Navy veteran of World War II and a Sunday school teacher when he spoke at the mission nearly 42 years ago.

That night, a 16-year-old boy caught his eye among the alcoholics and addicts who visited the Fifth Street shelter, now on Walker Street.

"He looked out of place," Mr. Pursley said. "I talked to him about Jesus, the lamb of God. Being a farmer, I told him I didn't know much about lambs but I knew about goats. We had 200 on the farm. I got through talking and that boy came running down the aisle with tears in his eyes. As God would have it, he got up there and got a Bible and got down on his knees. He was saved and that was the day I got hooked."

Mr. Pursley, 86, is retiring from the mission's board of directors after 41 years.

This afternoon, he'll be honored with a proclamation from the mayor's office declaring Sept. 3 "Sam Pursley Day" in Augusta. It will be read at a luncheon organized by the Augusta Exchange Club. Mr. Pursley once served as its president, having joined the club in 1957.

He's shied from few commitments in his life.

Mr. Pursley married Murriell Kalb 60 years ago this summer.

He worked more than 32 years with the state of Georgia, first with Gracewood State School and Hospital as farm director and later at Georgia Regional Hospital as an administrator.

The mission was founded in 1965 as a soup kitchen for the homeless. It currently houses up to 30 men, who are provided shelter, food, clothing, and counseling. Church services are held twice daily at the Open Door Chapel, which stands next to the Sam Pursley Administrative Building, established in 1993.

"No one is more dedicated to this place," said C.J. Johnson, who met Mr. Pursley in 2001 when he came to stay at the shelter. He's now the facilities manager.

"I'm back living in the community now thanks to a lot of what Sam has done," Mr. Johnson said.

Mr. Pursley was always more than just a board member, he said.

"He came every Thursday to have lunch or sit in on a class," Mr. Johnson said. "A lot of people talk the talk but he walks the walk."

Bud Carter, a longtime board member, attests to Mr. Pursley's commitment.

"I know of two times in the last 20 years that the rescue mission would have gone under if it had not been for Sam," Mr. Carter said. "He single-handedly brought it back to life."

He only half-jokingly calls Mr. Pursley "Saint Sam."

"He's swept floors, made beds, picked up trash. He's been president," Mr. Carter said. "There isn't a job he hasn't done."

Mr. Pursley says he's never minded.

"The rent we pay for the little space we occupy on earth is the service we render to others," he said. It's a favorite phrase of his.

"They don't make people like that anymore," said Nick Carter, Bud's son and a former president and member of the Exchange Club. "He believes in people."

Mr. Pursley tells the story of a neighbor whose drinking got him into trouble until he showed up at the rescue mission.

"They gave him a good meal and a good hot shower," Mr. Pursley said. "He crawled between two clean sheets. He slept the night unafraid. He liked it and wanted to stay."

The man completed the program, and got a new job, church and home.

"People can change. Really be turned around and all," Mr. Pursley said.

He hopes that's true for the 16-year-old boy he met his first night at the mission.

"It turns out he was a runaway," Mr. Pursley said. "We reunited him with his family the next day. I often wonder what happened to him."

If that boy was anything like the other men who have come through the rescue mission, his life has likely been changed.

"I've seen it happen," Mr. Pursley said. "When you see something like that, you figure you ought to get involved in it. It might just change your life, too."