Josie Lee Smith, 88, of Memphis, Tennessee, a devout Catholic, passed away peacefully in the early hours of Wednesday, January 2, 2019. Josie was born in Memphis, Tennessee February 3, 1930. She was a graduate of Theresa Little Flower and Sacred Heart schools and Southwestern College with a degree in classical music here in Memphis. After marriage, Josie started her family of four in New York. While in New York, Josie was involved with several organizations including the founding of The League of Women Voters in Long Island in the 1960s. Moving the family to Lincroft, New Jersey in 1970, she then went on to work for The New Jersey school system as a piano instructor and an executive assistant for both the Medical Examiner of Monmouth County, NJ and McGraw Hill Publishers in New York City. Josie was loved by all for her generous heart, great sense of humor, beautiful spirit, and her gift of music.
Josie was predeceased by her father, Joseph Phillips and her mother Ola Phillips, her step-mother Genevieve Phillips, and her beloved husband Winston Franklin Smith. Josie is survived by her loving children Geoffrey Smith, Alan Smith, Holly Linaburg and her husband David, Craig Smith and his wife Wendy. She is survived by her four beloved grandchildren Geoffrey, Allison, Cory, and Danielle. Josie was also blessed with six great grandchildren, Layla, Cora Jo, Nicholas, Greyson, Colton, and Edith.
The family will receive friends on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, beginning at 8:30 am, funeral services will be at 9:30 a.m.; all at Memphis Funeral Home, 5599 Poplar Chapel, Memphis, Tennessee 38119. Interment will be follow at 11 a.m. at West Tennessee Veteran’s Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations to The Ronald McDonald house of Memphis and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital of Memphis will gladly be accepted in memory of Josie Lee Smith.
