Frederick "Fred" Elmer Smith Jr.

Our Dad asked that his obituary only state “he was born, he lived and he died.” He no longer can lovingly tell us what to do. Therefore, we want you to know a few more things about our Dad.

Fred, or Freddy as his mother called him, was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts to Marion and Fred Smith. He is preceded in death by his favorite sister, Mary Jean Boles and survived by his younger brother, David Smith of Newburyport.

Fred was also preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Mary Louise Dougherty Smith, our beloved mother.

Fred is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and served in the Navy during the Korean war. He retired from the Newport News Shipyard as an engineer. His retirement years were filled with travel which he enjoyed particularly to Ireland where his family originated and a return to Italy where he had toured while serving in the US Navy. On the local front, he volunteered for years with the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation as a docent sharing his love for history with school children visiting Jamestown Settlement. He enjoyed reading and dining out with his large family at his favorite restaurants in Williamsburg, many of whom knew him by name.

Fred (aka Freddy, Dad, Grandad, & Grandpap) is survived by his favorite dog, John F Kennedy Jr (aka Jack). Left to cherish many fond memories of their dad are his 8 children: Lora Smith of Newport News, Frederick ‘Rick’ Smith III of Smithfield, David Smith (Patty) of Yorktown, Karl Smith (Jody) of Richmond, Priscilla Bele (Wally) of Newport News, Kathleen Bowman (Bill) of Newport News, Daniel Smith (Sharon Rasmussen) of North Carolina and Peter Smith of Ashburn. Fred’s longevity and large family blessed him with: 13 grandchildren (Erica, Heather, Shannon, Nikki, Tyler, Alexis, April, Andrew, Christine, Stephen, Hannah, Becca, and Taylor), 10 great-grandchildren (Kayla, Gabe, Jackson, Aiden, Isla, Owen, Harvey, Greta, Addison, and Ryland) and 3 great-great-grandchildren (McKenzie, Kiera, and Wynn).

Visitation will be held October 17 at Nelsen Funeral Home, 3785 Strawberry Plains Road, Williamsburg, VA from 1-3 p.m. Please stop by and meet Jack. Some of Dad’s ashes will be spread in the waters of Nags Head where he had spent decades of summer vacations with his family. The remainder of his ashes will be spread in the waters of Newburyport.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.NelsenWilliamsburg.com. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Heritage Humane Society, 430 Waller Miller Rd., Williamsburg, VA. Dad picked Jack, a small, friendly beagle, as his pup at the HHS (SPCA) and gave Dad many years of companionship.