Robert Lee Smith, 91, of Canal Winchester and formerly of Bellefontaine, passed away at 7:03 p.m. Saturday, March 11, 2023, at Sage Park Assisted Living in Gahanna, Ohio.
He was born in Springfield, Ohio, on October 28, 1931, the son of the late Ernest W. and Mary L. (Mitman) Smith.
On March 15, 1957, he married Barbara Lee (Cotterman) Smith in Sidney, Ohio and she preceded him in death on October 19, 2015. He is also preceded in death by two sisters, Grace Parker and Judy Minnich.
He is survived by two daughters, Carol (Mike) Delgrosso of Canal Winchester, Ohio, and Karen (Kenny) Mitchell, of Lithopolis, Ohio, grandchildren, Audrey Lee (Dave) Gauthier of Lithopolis, Ohio, Erin Rae (Glen) Henson of Hilliard, Ohio, Maggie Ann (Matt) Hemmelgarn of Worthington, Ohio, four great grandchildren: Josie Gauthier, Ada Henson, Tyson Gauthier, and Wesley Hemmelgarn, a brother-in-law, Marvin (Janice) Cotterman of DeGraff, special nephews & friends, Ron Parker and Tim Parker, nieces and nephews: Elaine Stockstill, Ann Burling, Vickie Yamaguchi, Collette Lewis, Betsy Moffett, Lori Davis, Steven Cotterman, John Cotterman, Matthew Cotterman, Bob Minnich, Bill Minnich, Joe Minnich, Doug Minnich, and his special cat, Precious.
Robert was a Korean War Veteran, serving in the U.S. Navy, where he sailed the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas. He worked as a Offset Pressman for Merchant Industries, Bellefontaine after the war, where he met Barbara. He was very civic minded and volunteered for hospice and for Big Brothers. He also worked for AmeriCorps and helped renovate homes for low-income families. Later in life, he moved to Canal Winchester with his daughters, and enjoyed helping with the great grandkids and maintaining the leaves.
The family wishes to give special thanks to Capital City Hospice and Sage Park Memory Care.
A memorial service will be at 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 23, in the Eichholtz Daring & Sanford Funeral Home, & Cremation Center, 321 N. Main St., Bellefontaine, Ohio 43311, where friends may call one hour prior to the service.
Memorial contributions may be made to Capital City Hospice, 2800 Corporate Exchange Dr Suite 170, Columbus, OH 43231or visit https://capitalcityhospice.com/donate.
Eichholtz Daring & Sanford Funeral Home & Cremation Center, Bellefontaine, is honored to serve the Smith family and encourages anyone to share a fond memory or message of condolence at www.edsfh.com.