Lois Elaine Dye Smith, 89
Lois Elaine Dye Smith, our beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully from renal failure on April 19, 2016, in Payson, Utah. She was 89 years of age.
Lois was born on February 4, 1927, in Kalispell to Earl William and Pearl Anna Petry Dye. Growing up in Kalispell and her beloved Flathead Valley, the close-knit community of her childhood and youth was a place of strength and peace to her throughout her life. She held dear her association with extended family, had many friends in her Attic Pals and Fam-il-ey clubs, participated in school activities, and joined with friends in baseball, ice-skating, music, drama, and dances. Though the economic difficulty of the Great Depression and the shadow of World War II were intertwined in the background of her youth, she always said that she felt loved and had all she needed through her associations with family and friends—faithfully attending high school reunions until 2005.
Attending Northwest Christian College in Oregon, then transferring to the University of Montana in Missoula where she studied home economics, sociology and Spanish, she was a member of the Alpha Phi Sorority. She met Arthur Francis Smith, who was a Sigma Chi, after Arthur returned from his service in the Navy. They were married December 28, 1948, in Kalispell, and were sealed June 23, 1967, in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple.
Lois lived life committed to family with a “bloom where you are planted” approach. Arthur’s employment took them to Denver, Colorado; St. Paul, Minnesota; Glen Ellyn, Illinois; Overland Park, Kansas; Minnetonka, Minnesota; Arlington Heights, Illinois; Mandeville, Louisiana; and, after Arthur’s retirement, Orem, Utah. Arthur often said, “Lois never knew a stranger” and people became family to her wherever she went. She was delighted to live closer to children and grandchildren after Arthur retired.
Her life was spent in devoted service to her family by actively supporting her husband and children in their activities. Lois also enjoyed gardening, sewing, and music of all kinds. She sang in choirs, played the organ for church, and taught piano lessons for many years. Spending thousands of hours in family history work, she not only gathered thousands of names but also preserved and shared a heritage with her family through memorabilia, photos and stories of her ancestors.
A convert and active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Lois loved serving wherever she could. She served in primary as a chorister, relief society and young women’s presidencies on a ward and stake level, and supported her husband in his calling as ward mission leader. Loving service of any kind, she cared deeply for those around her and was “no respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34).
She is survived by her five children, Deborah and Alan Glenn, Dr. Marshall Smith, Julie Smith Siebach, Therese and Reid Miller, and Cameron and Stephanie Smith; her brother-in-law G. Bruce and Traci Smith; and 28 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband (Arthur), her parents, sister Ina and brother-in-law Roy Klem, and daughter-in-law Ann Marie Smith.
Funeral Services will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, April 28 at the Heatheridge Stake Center located at 450 East 2000 North, Orem, Utah, with a viewing from 9:30-10:30 a.m. prior to the funeral. A viewing will also be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 27, 2016, at the Walker Sanderson Funeral Home, 646 East 800 North, in Orem.
The family would like to express gratitude for those who cared for Lois at Cove Point Retirement Community. They are also appreciative of the kind, compassionate, and loving care she received from staff of the Central Utah Veterans Home in Payson, Utah.
Condolences may be sent to the family at www.walkersanderson.com.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to the Humanitarian Fund of the LDS Church or service to refugees in your community.