Slain teen’s father speaks at funeral

Anyone who attended the funeral of Sam Poss on Monday could sense right away, if they didn’t know it already, that he was not a typical kid.

At the family’s invitation many of the hundreds in attendance dressed casual, and some were even barefoot. It was a tribute to the slain teen’s habit of not wearing shoes.

Others proudly wore socks with one that was a long and one that was short, which was another of his habits.

The service, held at First Baptist Church, began with the Perry High School drum line standing at the front of the sanctuary and beating a marching cadence as the family walked in. Poss played drums in the band until his graduation this spring.

Poss’ body was found in wooded area Thursday four days after he was reported missing. Two teens were arrested and charged with murder. An autopsy showed he was strangled and stabbed.

His father, Christian Poss, spoke at the funeral.

“Sam was good,” he began. “It took two evil people to overcome his goodness. That’s how strong he was and that’s how good he was.”

He talked about taking in a rescue dog, Annebelle, that he described as “broken, scared, skin and bones, blind in one eye, just a wreck.”

“Sam, with his loving spirit, bonded with her,” he said. “She became his dog, and Sam became her human. ... I’m sad Sam’s gone, but I’m more sad that more people won’t get to know him.”

Annebelle was listed in Poss’ obituary as one of his survivors.

Although Christian Poss said he always knew his son liked to help people, he didn’t know how much until after he died. He said he has heard many stories from people, some complete strangers, about how his son had impacted their lives.

“Sam’s death has shocked us all,” he said. “And we don’t know why. We never will know exactly why. But what really matters is Sam’s life.”

He urged those in attendance to honor him by carrying on his habit of helping others.

Andy Hursey, the Perry High School band director, also spoke at the funeral. He recalled trying to get through the school day Thursday after hearing the news, and as it spread through the school. He held practice later that day with the 188 members of the band.

“We spent the first hour of practice simply sitting in a circle and talking about family and about how much our band family means to everyone,” he said. “Then spent a lot of time just telling silly stories about Sam.”

Even before his death, Hursey said, the band had already established an annual “Sam Poss Day” in which members would wear one short sock and one long sock.

Poss wasn’t trying to make a fashion statement with that, Hursey said. He actually just didn’t pay attention that much to his socks.

“He will not be forgotten at all,” Hursey said.

Perry Councilman Robert Jones attended the funeral, although he did not know the family. He said afterward that the slaying has shaken the city, which hadn’t had a homicide in eight years.

“Perry, Georgia is a small, quiet, safe, peaceful town filled with great people and for us to experience a tragedy like this is truly shaking, truly jarring,” he said.

But he expressed gratitude for the police department for its work in solving the case quickly. People from around the country have sent gift baskets of food to the small department in recognition for its efforts in solving the case. One of those came from people in Ekalaka, Montana, where Poss’ mother, Nicole Poss, grew up.

This story was originally published October 24, 2016 at 7:45 PM with the headline "Slain teen’s father speaks at funeral."