TUSCALOOSA - Louise Ellis Smelley, age 83, of Tuscaloosa, Ala., passed away June 2, 2018 at Daffodil House Assisted Living. Services will be 3 p.m. Tuesday, June 5, 2018 with Dr. Tim Patrick and Rev. Alex Cowan officiating. Burial will follow at Sunset Memorial Park with Funeral Home, a Dignity Memorial Provider, directing. Visitation will be one hour prior to services at the funeral home.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Jimmie E. Smelley; mother, Pearl Ingram Ellis; father, Jeffie Ellis; sisters, Estelle Bennett, Livia Gooden and Rosie Ellis; brothers, Johnie, Cecil, Jeff, Martin, Waymond, Charles, James Windle and David Ellis.
Survivors include her sons, Jimmie E. Smelley, Jr. (Laura) of Duncanville, Alabama, Jon Anthony "Tony" Smelley (Angela) of Northport, Alabama; daughter, Nesha C. Smelley of Northport Alabama; and grandchildren, Mary Beth Smelley Cowan, Andrea Smelley Dyer, Jon Evan Smelley, James Smelley, MacKenzie Smelley and Jeremy Smelley.
The greatest love of her life was Jesus. After accepting His forgiveness for her sins and beginning to follow Him as her best friend and Savior as a 12 year old, Jesus was first, center, best, greatest and everything to her. Her favorite saying when asked how she was doing was, "I am blessed by the best with the best." She was a woman who prayed first and last and anytime in between. She was a friend of God.
Her second love was her family. She loved her husband, children, grands and great-grands with a deep, sacrificial and patient love.
She was born and grew up in Tuscaloosa. Her first job was selling candy downtown Tuscaloosa at Kress store where she met her soon to be husband. After they married she went with him to Atlanta, Montgomery and Germany as he served 23 years in the United States Armed Forces. She felt her most important job was to raise her children, so she stayed home with them until they were in school. Being excellent at mathematics, when she went back to work, she served as a bank teller and bookkeeper for years. She helped her husband and son begin NorthStar EMS and alternated sewing for grandbabies with filing insurance and paying bills for the company for its first years. Once she retired from NorthStar EMS she did her best to become a full-time grandmother. Whether it was attending a musical concert, having an arts and crafts day, or simply getting as many grandchildren as possible together to eat, she loved spending time with them. The only thing better than the grandchildren, were the great-grandchildren that began showing up in the last few years. Holding a child, and singing songs about Jesus to them made her smile from ear to ear.
In addition to Jesus and family, she had a love for children, tomatoes, whistling, Southern Gospel music, singing harmony, home-cooked vegetables, choc-choc (chocolate milk), math, correct English, her daily time with Jesus in His Word and prayer, sewing, photographs of family and tootsie pops. She grew up very poor, so, when she was able, she began a collection of clothes, shoes, purses, and jewelry that eventually encompassed every closet in the house. However, to her, clothes were still not as important as Jesus. She was known for singing and living out, "I'd rather have Jesus than anything this world affords today". If you are reading this and don't have an assurance of eternal Home in Heaven with Jesus, please message Nesha at [email protected]. Mom would want nothing more than her life and death here on earth to help point someone to an intimate relationship with Jesus.
Pallbearers will be Frank Smelley, Ronald Gene Smelley, Jon Bowers, Jon Evan Smelley, James Smelley and Jeremy Smelley.
Honorary pallbearers are Jonathan Reeves, Patricia Doughty, Tammy Clark, Jack Christenbury, special nieces, Gail Hales and Pat Gooden, Diane Deason and employees of The Daffodil House Assisted Living.
In lieu of flowers, please take a child out for a day, have fun with them, sing songs and at some point, tell them about the love and truths of Jesus or make a donation to The Daffodil House Assisted Living, LLC-12650 Old Marion Road, Tuscaloosa, AL 35405.
