John Edward Smith

John Edward Smith, 81, of Xenia passed away on Sunday, February 23, 2025. He was born on August 27, 1943. He married Wanda Jean (Bell) on August 2, 1963 and they were married for 53 years until Wanda passed in 2016.

He is survived by his three children, John Paul (Cheryl) Smith of Lebanon, Donna (Tracy) Scott of Jamestown and Steven Smith of Franklin. He has six grandchildren, Brittney Michael of Xenia, Johnny, Sara and Emily Smith of Lebanon, Chelsey Potts of Xenia and Arielle Manning of Beavercreek, 7 great grandchildren, Iris Lewis, Gauge Price, Juniper Paris, Maddilyn, Alayna, Karaline and Emilia Manning. He has one brother, Charles Smith of Fairborn and a sister, Sue (Ruben) Sanders of Florida, sister in law, Cindy Smith of Beavercreek, Brother and sister in law, Tom and Laurie Bell and many nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews. John is also survived by his wonderful girlfriend of the last seven years, Karen Williams of Xenia.

John is preceded in death by his parents Kelly and Lora (Long) Smith, his beloved wife of 53 years Wanda Jean (Bell) Smith, his brother Gary Smith and his sister in law, Karen Smith.

John grew up in Dayton, Ohio and graduated from Stebbins High School. He worked for Dover Elevator for 38 years. John was very involved in Xenia Wrestling and the Miami Valley Kids Wrestling Association. John was inducted into the Friends of Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1994 and into the GMVWA Hall of Fame in March of 2024 for his years of service to wrestling. He also belonged to the Road Knights of Dayton Car Club and enjoyed going to car shows. John traveled a lot with his sons while his grandson raced on the go kart circuit across the eastern United States. He was a fan of any type of racing, especially Nascar. A passionate and dedicated father, grandfather, great grandfather, brother, friend, neighbor, role model and so much more. He had so much knowledge and he had the answer or the tool to solve any problem. John never met a stranger and he will be missed by all who knew him.