Eugene "Smitty" Franklin Smith

Eugene “Smitty” Franklin Smith, 83 of Salem, Ohio, passed away at his home on Sunday, April 4, 2021.

He was born on October 6, 1937 in Youngstown, Ohio to his parents; the late Eddie and Marguirite (Crook) Smith.

Smitty attended school in North Lima. He married the love of his life; Nancy Louise (Needham) Smith on November 30, 1958 and together they built a beautiful life which spanned more than 62 years of marriage together. Smitty was employed at Col-Pump Co. Inc., a metal casting foundry in Columbiana, Ohio for 42 years and later was employed at Giant Eagle Grocery Store for 15 years, retiring from there in 2016. You could often find Smitty “shootin’ the breeze” with friends over a cup o’ joe at Pop Jackson’s Restaurant in Salem. Aside from enjoying his morning cup of coffee, Smitty was not one to sit around! He also kept busy by helping others by doing janitorial work and hauling things for whoever, whenever and wherever it needed to go. Smitty’s faith was the foundation upon which everything in his life was built. He was an active member of the North Lima Mennonite Church. He loved his church and church family and especially enjoyed the worship music. Smitty had a soft spot for old cars, his favorite being the 1976 Eldorado Cadillac that he owned and enjoyed working on. He kept active with a wide variety of hobbies, most of which were centered around his family. He looked forward to dressing up at Halloween and the family fondly remembers him being the perfect “Papa Smurf”. They often went camping and Smitty had a particular taste for hot dogs over an open fire. He was a big fan of big time wrestling and watching on TV with his daughter. He was a beloved grandfather and spoiled his grandchildren with love and attention whenever given the opportunity. He attended as many of their sporting events as he could and was one of their biggest cheerleaders. While he was Ohio born and bred, he looked forward to heading to the great state of Virginia. While Virginia, in its own right is a beautiful state to visit, it was the final destination of the family reunion and seeing all his family together, both young and old that he treasured dearly and filled his heart with joy. For all who knew him, he will be deeply missed, but, for now we can find comfort in knowing... “God has you in his keeping, while we have you in our hearts.”

In addition to his wife, Eugene is survived by his daughter; Ginger (Tom) Panek of Columbiana, 2 sons; Pastor Patrick (April) Smith of N. Waterford, Tim (Debbie) Smith of Salem, 6 grandchildren; Tommy, Zach, Matthew, Alex, Timmy, and Travis, 1 great grandchild; Dalton, siblings; Reverend Maxine (Reverend Richard) Bartholomew of N. Lima, Eddie (Irene) Smith Jr., of Wisconsin, Karen Pace of Utah.

Along with his parents, Eugene is preceded in death by his brothers; Ron and George Smith and sister; Judy Foerster.

A time of visitation will be on Thursday, April 8, 2021 from noon-2 p.m, at the North Lima Mennonite Church, 90 Mennonite Dr., N. Lima, Ohio, followed by a celebration of life service at 2 p.m. with his nephew, Pastor Jim Bartholomew of Dayspring Christian Fellowship officiating. Eugene will be laid to rest at the North Lima Mennonite Cemetery.

Care was entrusted to the Arbaugh-Pearce-Greenisen & Sons Funeral & Cremation Services of Salem, Ohio.

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