Max Joseph "Mr. Joe" Pittman, Sr., 94, of Benevolence, passed away on April 30, 2025, in Plains, Georgia. Graveside funeral services will be conducted at 11:00 AM on Saturday, May 3, 2025, at the Benevolence Baptist Church Cemetery with Rev. David Wolfe and Rev. Lee Wright officiating.

Mr. Joe was the son of Charlie Max and Annie Louise Belcher Pittman.  On May 11, 1952, he married Ruth Janelle "Miss Nellie" Phillips of Smithville.  The couple enjoyed 73  years together and had two children:  Max Joseph Pittman, Jr. (Karan) and Mary Phyllis Pittman Beard (Dexter); five grandchildren:  Matthew Beard (Kim), Daylon Beard (Jasmine), Peavy Pittman (Amy), Katie Pittman Wright (Lee), and Kirsten Beard Cochran, and eight great-grandchildren: Dayleigh Beard, Cam Wright, Levi Beard, Silas Beard, Warren Pittman, Charlee Wright, Whit Pittman, and Talley Cochran.

Mr. Pittman attended Benevolence School then was transferred and graduated from Cuthbert High School.  He was a member of the Albany, Georgia, US Army National Guard, a past Randolph County Commissioner, and a past Director on the Albany/Columbus/Eufaula Vocational-Technical College Board.  He was a member of the Benevolence Baptist Church and a deacon of the church for over 60 years.

Mr. Pittman owned and operated Pittman Machine Works, Inc. in Benevolence.  The company, which was begun in the 1970s, continued until 2018 building machines and parts for Ford Motor Company, Black and Decker, Dewalt, Cypress Gardens, Delta, and Disneyworld.

The family will receive friends on Friday at Lunsford Funeral Home from 5:00 until 7:00 PM. Memorials may be made to the Benevolence Baptist Church 233 N. Main St. Cuthbert, GA 39840.

LUNSFORD FUNERAL HOME

CUTHBERT, GA 229/732-2148