Dateline: March 4, 2004

Smith

Memorial services for George Wilson Smith, MD, age 85, of Marlin, Texas, were held at First Christian Church in Marlin at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 29, 2004, with Rev. Jimmy Phillips officiating.  Interment was held at Houston National Cemetery under the direction of Adams Funeral Home.

Dr. Smith died at his home on Friday, February 27, 2004.  He was born in Chico, Texas, on December 24, 1918, to John Henderson Smith and Katie Skaggs Smith.  Upon graduation from Memphis High School, he earned a BA degree in 1940 from Texas A&M, where he was Editor-In-Chief of the yearbook and a proud member of the Aggie Band.  Other honors at A&M include Distinguished Student, Scholarship Honor Society, President of Press Club, and Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities.  During World War II he served as field grade officer, Artillery, retiring after 54 months as a Lieutenant Colonel. 

George was married to his college sweetheart, LeVerne Simmons of Sherman, Texas, for 47 years until her death in 1988.  He was associated with Aetna Casualty and Surety Company after college and was owner/manager of General Insurance Agency in Sherman until 1951.  During those years he was a Director of the Sherman Chamber of Commerce and an officer of the Sherman Rotary Club. 

George received an M.D. Degree from University of Texas, Southwestern Medical School in 1955, where he was president of his class each of four years.  He was a family physician in Clarendon from 1956 to 1973, where he also served as Administrator of Adair Hospital, and County Health Officer.  He took an abandoned physical plant, built in 1910, in a town which had no hospital for many years, and brought it into compliance with all state and federal regulatory agencies, including Medicare, and then established a fully accredited school of vocational nursing.  He was president of the Clarendon Chamber of Commerce, president of Donley County Industrial Foundation, and president and chairman of the Building Committee of Clarendon Country Club.

After 17 years of family practice in Donley County, Dr. Smith was recruited to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Amarillo by the Texas Tech University School of Medicine.  He was the driving force in establishing the Amarillo VA as the primary site for Texas Tech’s clinical rotations.  His presence in organized medicine at local, state, and national levels served the VA well, as he was the Chief of Staff of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers in Amarillo, El Paso, and Marlin, Texas, where he retired in 1994.

Dr. Smith served in the Texas Delegation to the American Medical Association from 1983 to 1995.  Professional credentials include Diplomate, American Board of Family Practice; and Fellow, American Academy of Family Physician.  A long-time member of the House of Delegates of the Texas Medical Association, he was elected to the Council on Member Services, 1982-1994.

Survivors include his wife, Bettye Norris Smith; son, Charles Vernon Smith and daughter-in-law Cheryl of Houston; daughters, Sharon and son-in-law George Reynolds of Houston; Janis and son-in-law Jerry Elmore of Houston; Laurie and son-in-law Walter Becker of New Orleans; seven grandchildren, Melissa Leigh Reynolds, Scott Henderson Elmore, Jefferson Fontayne Elmore, Lindsey Le Becker, Hailey Simmons Becker, Andrew Marshall Smith, and Matthew Jordon Smith; one brother, Harold Winston Smith and wife Bettye of Memphis, Texas, and their children Karyn Nicolaou, Russell Smith, and Matthew Smith.  Also mourning his loss are the family of his wife, John Norris of Dallas; Natalie and John DeFrees, daughter Taylor of Pflugerville; Elaline and Randy Wilhelm, daughter Julie and son Jeffrey of Houston.