A longtime Jacksonville church leader died Sunday morning in a crash while traveling to worship at the Westside congregation where he had spent more than 38 years, leaving parishioners to begin the day in grief. Elder Samuel Coleman was remembered as a steady presence whose influence reached well beyond the church walls.
The crash happened at the intersection of San Juan and Cassat avenues, near The Potter’s House International Ministries, and left debris in the area, according to News4Jax. Church officials said Coleman was on his way to Sunday morning service when he was killed.
Four Decades At Jacksonville’s Westside Church
Coleman joined the congregation just months after it opened and went on to serve there for more than 38 years, church officials said. Narlene McLaughlin, the church’s chief administrative officer, said she learned about the crash while heading into a Sunday School class.
“He was a fixture in this church,” McLaughlin said, according to the report. Coleman’s death is now being mourned by both the Potter’s House church family and his biological family.
The Potter’s House says it was founded in June 1988 by Bishop Vaughn and Lady Narlene McLaughlin. The church’s official history describes its growth from a small gathering into a major Jacksonville ministry with outreach programs serving families and communities on the city’s Westside.
A Reach That Extended Beyond Sunday Services
In recent years, Coleman was also heavily involved with Young Life, a Christian youth ministry that works with middle school, high school and college students in the United States and more than 100 countries, according to the organization’s official overview. McLaughlin told News4Jax that Coleman likely influenced millions of young people through his work at conferences and conventions.
Church leaders said the congregation plans to mark Coleman’s passing with a homegoing service focused on celebrating his life. For a church that knew him as a constant presence from its earliest years, Sunday’s service carried the weight of an unexpected farewell.
