Samuel Lee Birdsong Jr.

Born on January 14, 1993, in Orlando, Florida, Sam entered the world already larger than life at 10 pounds, 11 ounces. He grew up during the unforgettable era of the 1990s — a world of Jurassic Park, comic books, Disney adventures, roller coasters, theme park summers, and memories captured on refrigerator doors and family walls. Those pieces of nostalgia would remain part of his spirit throughout his life.

From the very beginning, Sam faced challenges that would shape his strength and resilience. Born with a cleft palate, he endured numerous reconstructive and cosmetic surgeries throughout childhood and into his teenage years. Yet anyone who truly knew Sam understood that he never allowed those hardships to define him.

Instead, he became known for his intelligence, humor, creativity, sensitivity, and ability to connect deeply with the people around him.

Raised by his devoted single mother, Sam grew up surrounded by unconditional love and close family bonds, especially with his grandmother, who became one of the most important people in his life. The connection they shared was profound, and her passing became one of the most heartbreaking chapters he ever faced.

Some of Sam’s happiest memories were built not through extravagant vacations, but through simple time spent together. Summer after summer, he and his mother made memories at Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, SeaWorld, and throughout Central Florida. Those places became more than theme parks — they became tradition, comfort, laughter, and part of the story of their lives together.

Sam possessed a remarkable creative spirit.

During high school, he became an accomplished saxophone player and earned the prestigious Louis Armstrong Jazz Award, recognizing his talent, dedication, and passion for music. Later, he explored another artistic chapter of his life through hand-drawn artwork and detailed comic-inspired sketches, eventually working at SeaWorld creating character drawings for guests visiting the park.

One of the things that made Sam unique was the way he moved through life in chapters. When he discovered a passion, he pursued it intensely, mastering it with focus and creativity before quietly turning the page and moving forward into something new.

Beyond his artistic talents, Sam was endlessly curious and incredibly intelligent. He could hold conversations for hours about politics, history, law, medicine, movies, culture, or life itself. He explored many ambitions throughout his life because he genuinely wanted to understand the world and find where he belonged within it.

But above all else, people will remember how Sam made them feel.

He was funny.

Truly funny.

Friends from high school and throughout adulthood often spoke about his quick wit, sarcasm, humor, and infectious laugh. Conversations with Sam were rarely boring, and once he started laughing, everyone around him usually ended up laughing too.

Beneath that humor was someone who felt life deeply.

Over time, Sam continued evolving and rebuilding himself through every chapter of life. He lived in Baltimore for several years before eventually returning home to Florida, where he entered one of the happiest and most hopeful seasons of his life.

In July of 2024, Sam married his wife while the two were living together in a new townhome, and shortly afterward they purchased their first home together. It was a chapter filled with plans, dreams, laughter, hope, family, travel, and the feeling that life was finally beginning to settle into place.

Around that same time, he surprised his mother by developing the same love she had always carried for Mustangs and muscle cars, creating yet another bond between them that brought joy to both of their lives.

One of the clearest reflections of how deeply Sam was loved can still be seen throughout his mother’s home — walls and refrigerators covered with photographs, keepsakes, handprints, school memories, vacations, graduations, and snapshots from every stage of his life. Those memories were not simply decorations. They were evidence of a mother loving her only child with her entire heart.

To know Sam was to know someone who carried both depth and humor.

Someone who could make people laugh while also making them think.

Someone creative, intelligent, sensitive, evolving, and deeply human.

Though he left this world far too soon, the memories he created and the fingerprints he left behind remain everywhere:

in conversations,

in stories,

in laughter,

in photographs,

in art,

in music,

in family,

and in the hearts of everyone fortunate enough to love him.

Samuel “Bird” Birdsong passed unexpectedly Tuesday, May 26,2026 and will be deeply missed, lovingly remembered, and forever carried forward in the lives he touched.

He is survived by his wife, Ellen Groves, his mother, Tammy Birdsong, his father, Andy House, his brother, Jason Birdsong, and a full family made up of his friends and all those he loved.

In lieu of flowers, we ask that you show your support for our family by wearing Hawaiian shirts or tropical themed attire during his Celebration of life and consider donating to the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association.