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NATCHEZ — Longtime softball head coach Forrest Foster died Tuesday Morning after a battle with COVID-19. He was 69 years old. 

Foster was born in 1952 in Natchez and spent 40 years working with cars. He married his wife Debbie Foster on Sept. 27, 1981. Foster was also the owner of Rapid Recovery, a business he had owned for the last four years.

He leaves behind three children Alex, Ashley and Taylor Foster. 

Softball coach
He was a softball coach at Adams County Christian School for six years before he took the job at Vidalia High School in 2014. Assistant coach Jackie Johnston said he had coached for about 20 years, 11 of them were at ACCS. 

When Foster got to Vidalia, Johnston joined his staff. He said Foster trusted his assistant coaches to do their job. Everygame, he would ask for the starting lineup of the outfield, which Johnston coached. 

“He trusted our opinion and went with it,” Johnston said. “It is one thing I will never forget and it will always stay with me. On the softball field he was in his element. He was in a hurry to get there but never in a hurry to leave.” 

Vidalia High School principal Bernie Cooley said they broke the news to the softball team at 9:30 a.m., “They took it pretty hard,” he said. 

“He was a really good guy,” Cooley said. “He was a dedicated man to the Lord, his family and his softball girls loved him to death. He will be missed.” 

Faith and Family

As a coach, he would invite his players to church at First Baptist Natchez. Every practice began with a prayer and it ended with a prayer, Johnston said. 

“He wanted the girls to know God, softball was secondary,” Johnston said. “His wife was a very big part of this program. The girls loved Mrs. Debbie. She had a relationship with them too.”

He said Debbie and Forrest took care of their players in a lot of ways people may never fully know. All of his players were like daughters to him, Johnston said. 

Forrest had two grandsons of his own, Chase and WIll Foster.