Michael "Mickey" Smith

Michael David Smith was born on June 23, 1953; he was the second oldest son of Dolores Madeline and Arthur Thomas James. He grew up with his parents and five siblings on Going Street in North Portland where he spent much of his childhood with all of the neighborhood kids playing football. There were enough kids in the neighborhood to have two complete teams!

Mickey was always passionate about his interests. His childhood hero was “Zorro”, and he would say, “I want to be just like Zorro, not anyone else!” He set his sword aside when he attended Jefferson High School, as a star football player. He graduated in 1971 and was offered two football scholarships. His love of football continued throughout his life; playing on the Portland City League “Hit Squad” and then volunteering as a coach when he could no longer play himself. He went on to coach his Jefferson Pop Warner league team to their championship win. Even after retirement, he coached offense and defense for the Reynolds High School Freshman football team.

Mickey began working for the union when he was 18 years old. He was employed by Myers Container for over 20 years. In 1995, he was elected as a Business Representative for the Sheet Metal Worker’s Local 16 Union and he was re-elected for several terms, serving until he retired in 2006. During his tenure, he successfully negotiated the end of one of the longest strikes in Portland’s history.

One could see Mickey’s passion for music after taking one step into his Jimi Hendrix room. He loved attending concerts and he always strived to bring that atmosphere to his home with the loudest Bluetooth speakers he could find. He passed his love of Jimi Hendrix, Tower of Power, and Earth, Wind and Fire on to his daughters and Brittni introduced him to newer favorites like Bruno Mars.

Mickey loved to travel, especially to hot places. His favorite destinations were Palm Springs and Puerto Vallarta, where he was known by the locals as Sammy Davis. He even traveled to Spain, where Zorro had trained. He didn’t quite master acrobatics or swordsmanship, but he made some amazing memories with friends and family on his trips.

Mickey was an avid collector, from CDs to watches to Jimi Hendrix memorabilia. He passionately gathered quite the assortment of swords, shoes, and Bluetooth speakers and had a plan to use each and every item.

Mickey loved food from day one; legend has it that when he was born “Hungry Smith” left the hospital drinking an 8-ounce bottle. He was not only famous for polishing off the 32-ounce steak at Saylors, but also for his BBQ and his infamous motto “fried, died and laid to the side”. He was skilled at making fried chicken, ribs, shrimp skewers and he was a regular at Gartner’s Meat Market. He never did master estimating how much food to make, so his fridge was always stocked with tupperware containers of grilled meats.

Mickey met the love of his life, K’Lynn Estelle Pulliam over 50 years ago in high school, and they were married for 38 years. From the beginning of their relationship, Mickey and K’Lynn would host gatherings for family and friends. They would plan events from giant birthday parties at Kelley Point Park to backyard BBQ’s. Mickey and K’Lynn had two beautiful daughters, Lauren Rae and Brittni Lynn. He was truly proud of his daughters and shared his passion for football with them as an avid fan of their college teams, the Ducks and the Ragin’ Cajuns! Though he was known by Mickey to most, he gained his dearest nickname, “Poppy”, from his granddaughter, Simone Estelle Plinski.

Mickey began life as a gentle giant, a loving brother to Stevie, Deborah, Robin, Kevin and Lisa. He was influenced by the strength and support of his mom and his aunts and he ultimately spent much of his life surrounded by strong women that he respected greatly. He quickly grew into the hearts of many lifelong friends and family members and he cherished those special relationships throughout his life. He credited his years of successful sobriety to the Depaul Treatment Center and his Loyola Men’s Group. He greatly enjoyed the yearly campouts at Lake Sandusky (or Lake Simtustus to most).

He may have started with love “only for Zorro”, but his quiet passion, sense of humor, and love brought him a whole legion of loved ones.

Mickey is survived by his loving wife, K’Lynn; daughters, Lauren (Scott) and Brittni; granddaughter, Simone; siblings, Stevie, Deborah, Robin (Otis), Kevin (Sherrie), and Lisa (Ron); aunts, Doris, Adelaide, Jackie and Donna; in-laws and second family, Mari-Jo (Danny), Kevin (Susan), LeAlice (Larry), Deborah, Marlin (Ricki) and Jeff (Jeannie); and his begrudgingly beloved dog, Jazzy or as he called her “Scrappy”. He also leaves behind countless friends, coworkers, coaches, and extended family who loved him greatly.

He was preceded in death by his father, Arthur James; mother, Dolores James; second mom, Donnarae Pulliam; aunts, DeeDee and Wizzy; uncle, Wade "Poppa"; and lifelong friends, Steve Mack and Kyle Walker.