Pastor/First Lady
Pastor Samuel V. Harrell and Sister Dr. Babette Reid Harrell
Pastor Samuel V. Harrell came to Damascus in 1982 as a licensed minister. He was ordained in 1983 by Rev. Otis Newton and was installed as our pastor in 1994.
Pastor Harrell ordained Deacon William Elder and souls have been added to the kingdom under his
ministry.
Pastor Harrell started and ran a nursing home from 1980 thru 1990. He also served as president of our Mission in 1990 and mentored boys in Cleveland Baptist Association Youth Empowerment Program. Over the years he has taught Sunday School (the Junior’s and the Men’s Class); and he annually teaches the VBS Boys Junior Class. Pastor Harrell served as an associate minister under Rev. Otis Newton and Rev. William Bacon. He also served twice as the Damascus Baptist Church Interim Pastor.
Pastor is an unwavering supporter of the Mission and missionaries. He has a profound love for children and the word of God in all forms, preaching/teaching, prayer, bible study, and song. Along with his Damascus duties, he is currently teaching at Lake Galilee Baptist Church’s Holy Bible Institute.
Sister Dr. Babette Reid Harrell is foremost a follower of Jesus Christ since age 8. She is also a music education teacher, and an accomplised pianist. She is the helpmeet to her husband, Samuel V. Harrell, since 2012. Together they enjoy serving God’s people.
She has a calling to serve childrern young and old. She is the pianist and directress of the Echoes of Praise, the youth choir at Damascus Missionary Baptist Church.
Babbette graduated from Villa Angela Academy where she was recruited for the army military band and thus served the 26th Army Band of New York at Fort Hamilton of Bay Ridge (Brooklyn, New York). Babette holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Spelman College and a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance and Literature from the Universityof Notre Dame. In 2001, Babette composed the Holy Cross College Alma Mater, “Ave Crux Spes Unica” (Hail The Cross, Our Only Hope). Babette returned to Cleveland in 2008 and taught music for six years in the East ClevelandCity Schools District. On September 25, 2019 she received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Music Education from Boston University in the College of Fine Arts.
Our hope and prayer is that the Lord will continue to use Pastor and Sister Harrell in His Kingdom building With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Damascus will continue to worship Our Lord and Savior, lead others to Jesus Christ and work to honor and glorify God.
“Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit”,
says the Lord Almighty
Zechariah 4:6