LYDIA SMITH, 93, of Chester, Illinois, passed away at 11:10 pm, Sunday, June 21, 2015 at Perry County Memorial Hospital, Perryville, Missouri. The third of four children for Eugene Smith and Lydia Moehrs Smith, Lydia Smith was born at home on October 9, 1921. Lydia's childhood years were spent on the family farm in the Wine Hill community near Steeleville, Illinois. Her early education began in the one-room schoolhouse at the Mill Creek School. After attending Steeleville High School for one year, Lydia boarded with her sister, Irene, and finished high school in Campbell Hill. On February 13, 1942, Lydia graduated from Rubicam Business School in St Louis, and she immediately began her working career. Lydia's first job was at Buena Vista National Bank in Chester. The business world offered limited opportunities for women in that time and place, but Lydia made the most of the experience she gained working for Buena Vista. After 28 years at the bank, Lydia became Controller at Chester Memorial Hospital, a position she held until her retirement on October 1, 1992. Lydia has always been active in her community, and she was involved in many organizations, including: The American Red Cross, Young Republicans, the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, the State of Illinois Women for the Republican Party, and the American Heart Association. Lydia's faith was a central part of her character, and she made a point of immersing herself in the life of her church - first at St Peter's Lutheran Church and later at First Presbyterian Church in Chester. Her love of travel took Lydia to many exotic locations. With friends and family, Lydia visited dozens of domestic and international sites in England, Scotland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Greece, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, Hawaii, and Alaska. Her trip to Jordan, Petra, the Holy Land and Egypt included seeing the pyramids and taking a cruise on the Nile River. Lydia committed her life to helping those less fortunate than she was, and she worked tirelessly to make a difference in the lives of everyone she met - visiting shut-ins, caring for the elderly, delivering home-cooked meals, offering a helping hand to friends and family. An acclaimed gardener, Lydia spent many hours in the soil producing gardens at both her house and on the home place. Her roses were legendary, helped in part by the copious supply of fertilizer available for the taking out at the farm! Lydia was an avid bowler, and she bowled successfully in many tournaments, on teams, as doubles, and as a single. Lydia and her friend Dottie Maes started the Buena Vista Bank team, and they were regulars on the team for 40 years. Lydia was a tremendous role model for young people, and she enjoyed spending time with her nieces and nephews. Her family will always have happy memories of the impromptu car trips, picnics and outings organized by "Aunt Lyd." She was an avid genealogist who organized her family tree and collected numerous family photographs and memorabilia. She never tired of telling family stories to the younger generations during holiday get-togethers - always at their request. Lydia was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings, C.J. (Cap) Smith, Irene Agnes Smith Benson and Wyona Vivien Smith Coleman; her nephew, James Wain Smith and her nieces, Dorothy May Smith Bottom and Roselea Loraine Smith Randolph. She is survived by her nephews, Larry Donald Smith (Chester, IL), Philip Smith Coleman (Friendsville, MD), and David Yates Coleman (Forestville, CA); her nieces, Patricia Ann Smith Falkenhain (Steeleville, IL), Joy Kay Benson (Woodville, WI), and Sydney Elizabeth Coleman Willis (Tampa, FL); and great-nieces, Diana Smith, Jamie Smith Keller, Pennie Smith Saadallah, Roberta Bottom Lane, Claudia Bottom, Laura Smith Winters, Kimberly Randolph Heinrich, Angela Falkenhain Rushing, Michelle Falkenhain Poenitske, and Alex Johnson; her great-nephews, Charles Bottom, William Bottom, Michael Smith, Robert Smith, Larry Orville Smith, Adam Smith, Ryan Coleman and David W. Coleman. Lydia donated her brain to the Memory and Aging Project and her body to Washington University School of Medicine. Memorial Service: 6:00 pm, Thursday, July 2, 2015 First Presbyterian Church Chester, Illinois Officiating: Rev. Edwin Reuter Visitation: Thursday - 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm First Presbyterian Church, Chester, Illinois Memorials: First Presbyterian Church Marion Medical Mission
