Jerome "Jerry" Smith

Jerry ‘slipped the surly bonds of earth’ to fly west on April 17, 2020. In spite of his lengthy struggle with COPD, he left to begin his next adventure with a heart full of gratitude for having been blessed with a full life well lived. Born and raised in Owensboro, KY, upon graduation from Brescia College, he completed U.S. Naval Officer Candidate School. From there he took to the skies with his squadron, for seven years serving aboard the carriers Forrestal, Ranger and Constellation, with tours in both Vietnam and the Mediterranean. The majority of his time was in the Vigilante, the only Mach 2 bomber to serve aboard a Navy carrier.

Transitioning to United Airlines, his 33 year career began on the 727, subsequently flying the 737, DC-10, 757, 767, retiring as captain on the 747. Active in ALPA, he also served as a Training Check Airman at the training center in Denver. His first base was JFK, where we met and our pilot-flight attendant story began. Both transferring to Seattle, we married there in 1970 (he was so looking forward to our 50th coming up this June), moves to Los Angeles, Cleveland and Denver followed. Upon retirement in 1999, he informed me that he was ‘putting snow in his rearview mirror’ – which translated to ‘winters in Arizona’!

Settling back in Seattle post retirement, he enjoyed golf, fishing and best of all, time with family and friends. Till the very end, you wanted him on your trivia team and no one will ever give me a run for my money like he did at our marathon gin rummy games. After years of getting to know the world from 35,000 feet, exploring roads less traveled throughout the U.S. and into Canada fulfilled our love of travel. A 17,000 mile road trip, from July of last year till our return to Phoenix at the end of October, was an adventure that filled his soul to the brim with laughter and fun memories he enjoyed during his last few months on earth.

Missing him from the bottom of our hearts, are myself, Marybeth, our daughter Erin (Devraj) of New York City & Maine, our son Quinn (Tracy) of Seattle. Four grandkids, Asha & Nisha and Myla & Bryce, are all pretty sure he hung the moon (and he was sure they all did!). Extended family in Kentucky, the Pacific Northwest, India and friends and family scattered throughout the country will likely smile as they remember the character that he was. We hope that memory of him is paid forward with an act of kindness toward a stranger, a prayer of healing for the world today or simply a word of encouragement to someone who's struggling in these uncertain times.

Hopefully the world will settle back to some ongoing form of normal so we can plan a celebration of his life in the future. Till then, in Lieu of flowers, a note of support to a healthcare facility or a donation to Mayo Clinic of Arizona, where he received exceptional care for many years, would be appreciated. This amazing research and care facility is on track to lose 3 billion dollars this year, just at a time when we need their research prowess the most!

Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street S.W., Rochester, MN 55905.