Joel didn’t want to make that mistake: “I wanted to do something we needed - and could afford - first.” “By the time he’s done, the architect has designed exactly what the pastor wants … but with very little thought for what the pastor can afford. “When a pastor hears that question, he immediately begins to talk about the sanctuary he wants, the children’s space he wants, the café he wants, and on and on,” he says. Though wonderful people and fantastic artists, Joel points out that many architects lead with a single question: What do you want in a facility? They have an idea for a building, and their first stop, typically, is an architect.”
“Almost every pastor I talk to has run into the same thing,” Joel says. Not only that, but those plans themselves cost $750,000 to commission - a significant financial expenditure.Īs Joel recalls, the architect hired was just starting his own practice, and Word of Life might have been the architect’s first or second church client. “The cheapest we got back was $22 million.” Then, a significant setback: those same plans detailed a project scope that exceeded the church’s intended budget by more than 200 % ! “We found out because, when the plans were done, put them out for bid,” Joel recalls. The foundation for the new sanctuary was put down. Trees were torn out, and a parking lot was put in place. The property was purchased and developed. Shortly before his passing, Ronnie Sims laid the groundwork for a $10 -million construction project at the church. In 2005, at just 19, Joel returned home to Jackson, MS, where he took over as senior pastor. His mother led the church for two years, while Joel attended Rhema Bible Training Center in Broken Arrow, OK. Though devastated by the loss, Joel’s family - including his faith family at Word of Life - persevered … and grew. At the time, Joel was a senior in high school. He has also undertaken $29.4 million in construction projects - some completed, and some just beginning.īy anyone’s standards, Joel is a young pastor with a big, big job.Īnd for many church leaders-in-training, the circumstances driving his rapid ascension to the senior pastor role could have severely complicated matters: At 17, Joel’s father, Ronnie Sims - the church’s founding senior pastor - passed away. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to either Faith Presbyterian Church in Brookhaven, MS, or to the First Presbyterian Church of Oxford MS.Ī memorial service will be held at First Presbyterian Church of Oxford on Saturday, September 25, 2021, at 2:00 p.m.At 33, Pastor Joel Sims of Word of Life Church in Flowood, MS, has already served in executive church leadership for more than a decade. George (Kay) Meadors of Oxford, for the selfless love and nurturing friendship which greatly enriched the last years of Babe's life. The family reserves a special word of gratitude for her dearest friend, Mrs. She is also survived by many beloved nieces, nephews and cousins in the Robinson and Field clans. "Billy" Chadwick of Oxford, MS, William Lyon Chadwick, Jr (Toni, Harper and Bailey of Nashville, TN) and Michael Carr Chadwick, (Kate Hawkins and Treeby) of New York City Helen Davis "Cakie" Rondos and her husband Ambassador Alexander Rondos, currently of Nairobi, Kenya, Michael Nelson Waltman (Kathy, Marian, and Ann Carter), of Brookhaven, MS, Mary Helen "Missie" Strong (Clint, Emerson, Arie and Sydnie) of Madison, MS, and Susanna Waltman, currently of Geneva, Switzerland and Nairobi, Kenya. Field, of Tupelo, MS, her daughters and their families: Julie Weeks Chadwick and her husband William L. Field, Sr., (Cakie) and her brother and sister-in-law, Dr. She was preceded in death by her husband, Judge Michael Lemuel Carr, her parents, Dr.
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Babe moved to Elmcroft Assisted Living Home in Oxford after Mike's death, where she spent a last full and rich ten years of her life, surrounded by a wonderful group of friends, and with her daughter Julie and family living nearby.
They later made their permanent home in Brookhaven, MS, where they faithfully served their community and reared their two beloved daughters. After he returned from WWII, they married and began their new life together at the University of North Carolina, while Mike completed law school. She graduated from Centreville High School, attended Belhaven College, finished her pre-med degree at LSU and was on her way to medical school when her plans abruptly changed after falling in love with Michael Carr, who was stationed at Camp van Dorn in Centreville. Jennings Field, and a native of Centreville, Ms. Mary Helen "Babe" Field Carr, 97, of Brookhaven and Oxford, Ms, passed away peacefully on September 20, 2021.īorn April 17, 1924, Babe was the eldest child of Dr.