Balloon release honors Savannah reverend who ministered to women in jail

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The community gathered outside a Savannah home Wednesday evening for a balloon release honoring Reverend Myra G. Mitchell, who died August 28, 2026.

Rev. Mitchell served for many years at the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office. In May 2023, she received the CCSO Award of Excellence. In August 2025, the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office dedicated its chapel as the Hands-Mitchell Chapel, honoring her years of spiritual covering and community service.

Rev. Mitchell also founded Women of Value, a ministry that continues to inspire women to rise above their past and walk boldly into their future.

The balloon release took place at 6 p.m. outside her home at 307 West 39th Street.

Family remembers a spiritual mother

Natasha Hicks, Rev. Mitchell’s daughter-in-law, said Rev. Mitchell took her in as a spiritual mother.

“She pushed me to a place that I have never been before,” Hicks said.

Hicks described Rev. Mitchell as stern and strict, but generous.

“She’s been stern. She’s been strict. She’s a no-nonsense person. But she has a heart as big as Texas. I mean, she... it’s a heart of gold,” Hicks said.

Hicks said Rev. Mitchell’s ministry, known as “Myra’s girls,” extended beyond her own children to the wider community.

“She would take the clothes off her back to make sure that you had. She would not eat to make sure you ate,” Hicks said. “There’s no other way to explain Myra G. Mitchell. There’s no other way.”

Hicks said she now walks “boldly in ministry” because of what Rev. Mitchell instilled in her.

“I’m just going to constantly remember who she is. I can’t say was, because she lives within me,” Hicks said.

Jailhouse ministry left lasting impact

Sandra Sampson, said she met Rev. Mitchell through her jailhouse ministry.

“She really became a part of my life. And she was just like a spiritual mother of mine,” Sampson said.

Sampson said she lived on the streets of Savannah near Jefferson and Montgomery streets, not far from Rev. Mitchell’s home on 39th Street.

“She’d be sitting on her porch some mornings. And I’d be out here flagging down cars and hollering and going on. And she’d be trying to pray for me,” Sampson said. “She was trying to help me save my life from the enemy.”

Sampson said she came home from prison in 2014 and started her own ministry, “From the Street to the Street,” feeding people and ministering to those on the street.

“She taught me how to live and how to be a woman of God,” Sampson said. “I thank God that God allowed her to live to see the change in me.”