Emily Shepherd
Contributing Writer
eshepherd2@murraystate.edu
The Murray community has banded together to raise money in honor of Samantha Ratledge, the Murray State student who died in a boating accident over Labor Day weekend.
On Sept. 19, the American Society of Safety Professionals chapter, an Occupational Safety and Health organization, honored Samantha and Calloway County Fire and Rescue for its hard work and dedication to the community.
The ASSP raised over $1,000 for the rescue squad. Samantha was pursuing a degree in occupational safety and health. The event was supported and facilitated by students.
“Not only was she a Racer but she was a great OSH student as well,” Trevor Cheatham, president of ASSP, said.
CCFR headed the search for Samantha after she fell over the railing on the pontoon boat she was riding on.
Fire Chief Thomas Morgan said the fire department was overwhelmed by the amount of support shown by the entire community and the support of Samantha’s family. Morgan estimated the fire department has collected over $7,000 in donations.
The donations will be put toward new sonar equipment called side scans. The updated sonar equipment will allow for more efficient water search and rescue. The department plans to update five units that are over a decade old.
“We just appreciate the support, it’s been overwhelming as far as the support, we’ve gotten cards, even people from out of town are thanking us for our time,” Morgan said. “I appreciate everything everyone is doing for us.”
Morgan also said the fire department might add an additional boat to the fleet with the excess donations after updating the sonar equipment. The new boat will be named after Samantha, to honor her memory. Every donation will be used to help strengthen the emergency services in the community.
“Our goal is to prevent future families and friends from having to go through the long waiting process we experienced while searching for our friend Samantha Ratledge,” according to a GoFundMe page setup by Samantha’s friends to aid in fundraising efforts for the fire department.
David Ratledge, Samantha’s father, said their family is grateful for all the support they have received.
“We feel Murray is a small town community in the Bible Belt where they treat everyone as family and when a family member is in need, we rally around them,” Ratledge said. “Words cannot express the generosity that has been shown by this community.”
As of Sept. 26, the GoFundMe page has raised $3,915 out of their $6,000 goal with 75 donors participating.
Ratledge said Samantha will be remembered for her kindness.
“She often doodled down little sayings like ‘be good to strangers, for no reason’ and ‘the only regrets we have in life are the chances we did not take,’” Ratledge said. “She took chances, loved people wholeheartedly, and left this world with no regrets.”
If you would like to make a donation in honor of Samantha, you can find the GoFundMe page on here.