'Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine,' these powerful words were written as an expression of faith and are based on Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." One of the last visits, these words filled the room, as Dad grasped ahold of their meaning and what was to come for him. Samuel August Hoerster III, went to heaven to be with his Savior on February 26, 2023. Sam had a variety of aliases throughout his life: Sammy, Mr. Hoerster, Big Sam, Pastor Sam…but none was more heartwarming and widely used as "Opa." He was Opa to many and that title brought Sam enormous joy.

On March 29, 1942, Samuel August Hoerster III was born to Dr. Samuel August Hoerster, Jr and Genevieve Heatherwick Hoerster (Noren) in Fort Worth, Texas.  Due to WWII and his father's schooling and occupation, Sam moved around the state a great deal. One of the earliest places he lived was Mason County. He lived with his grandparents, Samuel August Hoerster, Sr and Elizabeth "Lizzie" Jordan Hoerster in the community of Art. He attended Mason schools until the age of nine, when he was reunited with his parents. That took him to Big Spring and Austin, where he ultimately finished his schooling at McCallum High School in 1960.

One thing is for certain, and that is – he considered Mason County his home, and cherished his memories of living with his grandparents, surrounded by generations of family. It was there that he developed his love of hunting and fishing. One of his favorite past times later in life would end up being bow fishing.

It was through his Mason County connections that he met Maribelle Sharpe. They had mutual friends, and both ended up attending the University of Texas directly after high school. Sam loved to tell stories about "dutifully" volunteering to drive Maribelle to Mason for visits back home, any chance that he got. Their relationship blossomed and they wed on August 19, 1962.

The following July, they began their family: Sherryl arrived, then Natalie, followed by Elizabeth, and finally Samuel IV.  Sam's family was of utmost importance to him; he had the qualities of faithfulness, loyalty and dedication, which made him a very strong family man.

Sam would be the first to tell you that he had faults, was a man with struggles, and did not deserve the rich blessing of his family, God's unconditional love and grace; however, he did appreciate them wholeheartedly and did not take them for granted. He took every opportunity to share God's love with anyone who would listen and never passed up an opportunity to pray for anyone. He recognized that the good he had in his life was a gift from his Heavenly Father.

Sam earned his Bachelor's degree from the University of Texas in 1964; he then began his career as a teacher/coach for Austin Independent School District, where he taught at both Travis High School and Crockett High School. While teaching, he earned his Master's degree from Southwest Texas State in 1972. In 1977, he took a break from teaching, and became a preacher. He pastored churches in Austin, Victoria and Mason.  He later returned to his first vocational calling: teaching. He took a job at Brady High School, then eventually transferred to Mason High School, where he retired in 2015 after years of teaching High School and Dual Credit History, Government, Economics, and Psychology.  There were many students that will remember being "blessings" to Opa, and even a few that maybe did not share that title, but it is guaranteed that Opa loved them equally.

Anyone who knew Sam, knew how people-oriented he was and what genuine love he had for all people.  He has been described as "larger than life" and while he was a man of large stature, it was more than that. He had a strength about him that was undeniable. He was a natural-born leader and protector-a champion of the under-dog. He didn't know a stranger and loved to play chess, 42, spades…really anything that took strategy.  He was known to enjoy a good joke and could cut up with the best of them.

Sam will be dearly missed by his family, but the memories and many stories they have of him, bring joy and will continue to surface at family get-togethers. There will be an Opa sized hole that will not be filled. He would not want his family to mourn like those with no hope, but to enjoy his memory, and know with all certainty that this is a mere momentary separation when compared to eternity.

Samuel August Hoerster III is survived by his wife of 60 years, Maribelle Sharpe Hoerster and his four children and their families:

Sherryl Bibb and her husband Justin, Sr

Emilie Bibb Davidson (Daniel) and their children: Beaux, Truett, Gill, Wyatt and Quinn

Justin Bibb, Jr (Katherine) and their children: Sophia and Samuel

Jessica Bibb Tisdale (Rhett) and their children: Abigail and Jonathan

Hillary Bibb Williams (Todd) and their children: Otto, Owen and Redman

Jacob Bibb (Evelyn)

Elliot Bibb (Cheyenne) and their daughter: Adeline

Garrett Bibb

Natalie Hudson and her husband Treg

James Hudson

Jared Hudson (Robin) and their children: Olivia, Hank and Ruth

Ethan Hudson

Amanda Hudson

Caroline Hudson Tanner (Braden) and their children: Haddy, Georgia and Dorothy

Seth Hudson (Corrine)

Haddon Hudson (Ashley)

Elizabeth Cano and her husband Denis

McKenzie Cano

Maddie Cano

Sam Hoerster IV and his wife, Jessica

Jordan Hoerster

Caleb Hoerster

Sam III is also survived his two sisters, Jenny Glassman and Sandy Stubbs and her husband, David, his brother-in-law, Ed Sharpe and his wife Molly, his stepfather, Leon Noren, a niece, Genevieve Burmeister and four nephews: Aaron Stubbs, Reuben Stubbs, Will Sharpe and Stuart Sharpe.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Sam Hoerster, Jr and Genevieve (Hoerster) Noren, a brother-in- law, Alan Glassman, a nephew, "Little" David Stubbs, a niece, Ginny Stubbs, one granddaughter, Addison Belle Cano, and a great-grandson, Cody Samuel Hudson.

His family would like to thank:

Nikki and Miriah, his High Plains Senior Care Hospice nurses. They both were loving and kind caregivers for Opa and were an invaluable support to our family.

Llano Nursing Center and the many caretakers there, who took great care of him, several of whom were his former students.

The many friends and family members, who came by the house for visits, sweet prayers and delivered delicious meals.

The loving community of River of Life Church, Pastor Dave and Roxie Benefield for the time and love bestowed on our families during this difficult transition time.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Sam's memory may be made to:

His favorite mission group, who serves Nigeria and is led by his longtime friend, Tony Okeke

African Outreach

℅ River of Life Church

PO Box 1477

Mason, Texas 76856

Art East Cemetery

℅ Jack Asbill

PO Box 1581

Mason, Texas 76856

The family had a graveside service handled by Mason Funeral Home and officiated by Dave Benefield.

A Celebration of Life service will be held on March 4th, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. at River of Life Church with visitation afterward. Please join us in celebrating Dad's life. God Bless You, Dad!

Online condolences may be sent to the family at masonfuneralhome.net

Arrangements were entrusted to Mason Funeral Home.