Obituary of Jeanette Smith

Funeral services for Miriam Smith of Sulphur Springs are set for 10 a.m. Saturday at Myra Wilson Chapel, followed by burial in City Cemetery. The Rev. Fred Randles will officiate, assisted by the Rev. C.J. Duffy. Smith, a retired Houston Elementary School teacher known to friends and family as Midge, died Wednesday of natural causes. She was 97. Smith was born in Mt. Pleasant, where her father was a school superintendent. She grew up in Commerce, where her father served as an administrator for East Texas State Teachers College, now Texas A&M Commerce. She attended college there and met her husband, Sulphur Springs native Henry George Smith. They were wed in Commerce on Dec. 28, 1935, and were married 55 years. After Henry's service in World War II, the couple moved to Sulphur Springs, where he ran a family farm and served on the school board. Miriam worked nearly two decades as a second-grade teacher at Houston Elementary, where she was awarded a lifetime PTA membership. Miriam Smith was a member of Waverly Club, the Society of Magna Carta Dames and the Plantagenet Society. She was a 50-year member of PEO. She was a devoted member of First Baptist Church of Sulphur Springs, where she played piano and organ. She also played piano for various civic clubs. She is survived by her beloved son, Henry George (Hank) Smith, Jr. and wife Sarah; and by three grandsons: Jeff Smith, Richard Smith, J.B. Smith and his wife Bethany. She is also survived by a great-grandson, Benjamin Henry Smith; sister-in-law Doris Smith of Greenville; and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband and by five brothers and sisters. Pallbearers are Jeff Smith, J.B. Smith, Richard Smith, Dr. Jack Philbrick, Dr. Perry Smith, C.J. Duffey, and Bill Alford. Honorary pallbearers are Dr. Tom Kantz, Carl Bryan, Dr. Mark Miller, Alec Bridges, William McDowell, Gary Odom, Don McFetridge, James A. Walker, Perry Lewis Walker, Dr. Kendrick Walker, George Riley Smith, and Allen Moore. The family wishes to thank the staff of Legacy Hospice for their faithful care of Miriam Smith during the last 10 months of her life. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Meal-a-Day center, Sulphur Springs, TX. Arrangements are under the direction of West Oaks Funeral Home. www.westoaksfuneralhome.com