Gary R Smith

Memorial services will be held at St Timothy’s Episcopal Church on Monday, July 6, 2026. The family welcomes friends and loved ones before the service from 10:00-11:30. The service will follow the visitation at 11:30.

Gary was born in Des Moines, Iowa, on January 23, 1940, the son of Wilbert E. “Gus” Smith and Edna (Dunham) Smith. He grew up in West Des Moines, Iowa, where he graduated from Valley High School in 1958. Gary served his country in the Iowa Army National Guard from 1962 through 1968. He graduated from the University of Iowa in Iowa City in 1968, and was a lifelong Hawkeye fan, especially enjoying football and basketball games with friends and family.

The majority of Gary’s professional career was spent in insurance as a safety consultant in Chicago, Illinois, Omaha, Nebraska and Des Moines, Iowa. He earned the insurance designations of CSP (certified safety professional), CPCU (chartered property and casualty underwriter), ARM (associate risk manager), and was a past president of The Great Plains Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers. In 2000, Gary made a career change to real estate and thoroughly enjoyed his employment at Iowa Realty.

Gary’s family and friends were the joys of his life. Growing up he was happily surrounded by the extended Dunham and Smith families, which included his parents and sister Linda, as well as beloved grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and nieces and nephews. He married Marsha Morgan of Iowa City, Iowa, on February 8, 1969, and together they raised two daughters, Laura and Meg. The girls were born in Omaha but spent most of their childhood years in West Des Moines where they graduated from Valley High School as their father had and later the University of Iowa. Gary kept in touch with his Valley High School class of 1958, which is a tight-knit group. He enjoyed golfing with friends and especially loved being a proud grandfather to grandchildren, Jackson and Megan Walthart, and Zachary Gilland. Gary will be greatly missed by his family and friends. He was preceded in death by his father, Wilbert E. “Gus” Smith and his mother Edna Smith.

Gary is survived by his wife, Marsha, daughters Laura (Brian) Walthart of Iowa City and Meg (Rob) Gilland of Highlands Ranch, Colorado, his grandchildren, Jackson and Megan Walthart and Zachary Gilland, and his sister Linda (Michael) Knight of Urbandale.

Memorial contributions may be made in lieu of flowers to a fund that will be used to honor Gary’s memory.