Chester Leon Smitherman Jr.

Chester Leon Smitherman, Jr. passed away on Tuesday, March 23rd, 2021 and now is in the presence of God. He was born on June 24, 1943 in his own home in Houston, Texas. Chester was 77 years old. He was born the second of three children to Chester Leon Smitherman, Sr. and his wife Frankie Elizabeth Bell Smitherman, at home. He served in the US Air Force where he was an analyst for Air Force Intelligence. Chester was a graduate of the University of Houston with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and second degree in Computer Science.

Chester married Marjorie Elaine Qualls, (P.B.) on January 2, 1971. Together they raised two sons: Patrick and Jeffrey Smitherman. They had one grandchild, Jeffery Joshua Smitherman. P.B. and Chester were married 50 years.

Chester retired from Shell after over twenty-five years of service. After that he spent a short time with Aspen-Tech and then helped start a company, Visual Intelligence, where he developed several patents for mapping using high resolution imagery. Among his peers, Chester was commended for his self-taught extreme intelligence. His gift was diagnosing and solving problems.

In his extended family Chester was everyone’s helper. He was the family mechanic, computer programmer, and furniture mover. Chester was a dedicated family man who was totally devoted to his two sons. Chester coached soccer for several years. He studied coaching technique, then implemented what he learned in teaching and coaching his teams.

One of the highlights of Chester’s fatherhood, was taking a group of Boy Scouts which included Patrick and Jeffery, on a two-week backpacking adventure to Philmont Boy Scout Camp in New Mexico where they hiked a camped in the wilderness for over ten days. He turned 50 years old while on the trip.

The love of Chester’s life was Peeby. He was totally devoted to her. He thought of her as his perfect mate and spoke it often. Chester always mentioned he was the luckiest guy in the world because Peeby accepted his hand in marriage.

Chester came into faith as an adult and excepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He will forever be in the presence of the Creator.

Chester is survived by his devoted wife Peeby, sons Patrick and Jeffery, grandson Joshua, sister Beverly Dixon and extended family. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Houston’s First Baptist Church Preschool Department.