Samuel ("Sam") Earl Burrage, age 75, of Paducah, KY, passed away peacefully on Monday, August 2, 2021 at 3:10 a.m., with his wife by his side at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Marion, IL.

Sam is survived by his wife, Barbara Burrage of Paducah, KY; his daughter, SaMee (Julian) Harden of Washington, D.C.; one grandson, Jace Harden; one sister, Betty (Ulysses) Jones of Smyrna, TN; several nieces, nephews, great nieces, great nephews, and cousins. Sam is also survived by many close and dear friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Reverend Charlie Ross Burrage and Mary Harvey Burrage; four sisters Dorothy Taylor, Annie Louise Skinner, Christine Pace, and Margarette DeFrancis Burrage; and three brothers Johnnie Ross Burrage, Charles Kendrick Burrage, and Marshall Roosevelt Burrage.

Sam was a veteran of the United States Air Force. He was a 1964 graduate of Lincoln High School, in Paducah, KY; Paducah Community College; and the Columbia University Summer School of Journalism in New York City, NY.

Sam was also a member of the Old Eighth Street Tabernacle Baptist Church and the Ninth Street Tabernacle Ministries of Paducah, KY.

Sam served on the Board of Directors of the Oscar Cross Boys' and Girls' Club of Paducah; the Alumni Board at Paducah Community College; the Board of Directors of the West Kentucky Easter Seal Center; the Dream Factory Board of Directors; and the Board of Trustees of the Land Between the Lakes. Sam was also honored as a Duke of Paducah; a Kentucky Colonel; and named Who's Who in Black Journalism in Kentucky. Sam was a news reporter for WPSD-TV for over 35 years.

Funeral services are scheduled for 12:00 p.m. (Noon) on Saturday, August 14, 2021 at Ninth Street Tabernacle Ministries. Reverend Thaddyeus D. Thompson, Sr. and Reverend Alfred Anderson will officiate, with burial to follow at Oak Grove Cemetery in Paducah, KY.

Friends may call on the family at the church on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until the funeral hour.

You may light a candle or leave online condolences at pettusrowlandfh.com.

Masks are required for all attendees.

Pettus-Rowland Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

To send a donation in memory of Samuel E. Burrage, please consider the Oscar Cross Boys' and Girls' Club of Paducah, KY and the American Cancer Society.