Obituary

LORA MAE SMITH
(March 9, 1939 - January 5, 2013)

Lora Mae Smith, 73, went to be with her Lord and Savior on Jan. 5, 2013 at her home in Huntington, WV. She was born Lora Mae Hill on March 9, 1939, she was the youngest of four children born to Martha “Maggie” Lovejoy Hill and Charles Hill of Lincoln County, WV. Following her mother’s death she was raised by her maternal Aunt Thelma Lovejoy Bragg and Uncle Mark “Dangie” Bragg, she was the third oldest of their daughters. She was married to Marvin Lee “Bud” Smith of Barboursville, WV on May 2, 1960. Bud is a US Marine Corp Korean War Veteran and retiree of Special Metals Huntington, WV. Lora Mae and Bud have one son, Stephen Lee Smith, of Covington, KY, an Eagle Scout and US Army Desert Storm Veteran, and one granddaughter, Chloe Lee Smith who is in third grade and rides horses. Lora Mae was a graduate of Huntington East High School, Huntington WV, and attended Marshall University, Huntington, WV. A lifelong Marshall Football fan, proud West Virginian, and devoted servant of her Lord, Lora Mae was a member of the Baptist Temple, a Southern Baptist Church in Huntington, where she taught Sunday School for many years and supported the Church with her time, talents and tithes. She was a founding member and on the Board of Directors for Martha Cemetery in Lincoln County, WV, which was named in honor of her mother who rests there with her father. Lora Mae loved her family and nature. She saw God’s hand in the wilderness of West Virginia and Alaska and also in the iris, the lily and every waterfall she laid eyes on. She liked to travel to state and national parks and to take walks on the property she and Bud owned. The couple kept large gardens, the fruits of which she canned to share with others. She was an excellent seamstress, making clothes for herself and her family. She would knit and crochet beautiful blankets for gifts. She had many talents including cooking and baking, but she was the most humble person you would ever meet. She and Bud always opened their home for family who needed care or a temporary place to live. She cared for her infant niece, Keni, for 5 years, her niece, Ginger, and her nephew, Kris, lived with them while he was attending Marshall University. Her life was nothing short of a medical miracle. Through God’s good doctors and His good medicine He allowed us to be blessed by her love and presence for longer than any of us could have imagined. We are eternally grateful to God and look forward to being reunited at his second coming. Lora Mae is preceded in death by her mother and father and brothers Charles Jr. (C.J) Hill, Marvin Hill, and sisters Genevieve (Ginny) Hill Balmer, Darlene Bragg Schroder and Glory Gay Bragg Riggs. She is survived by her loving husband, Bud; devoted son, Steve; adoring granddaughter, Chloe, and a very special and beloved friend and caregiver, Anita Dame of Covington, KY. She is also survived by oldest sister, Joy Bragg Browning, of DeLand, FL. She is survived by nine nieces and nephews on the Hill side, David, Rebecca “Becky” and Lora Marie “Bunny”; Carolyn and Edward all of Virginia Beach, VA, and Leonard “Lenny”, Beth and Martha Balmer; sister-in-laws Edith Hill and Marge Hill also of Virginia Beach, VA. On the Bragg side, she is survived by one nephew, Mark Kristopher Walter Schroder of South Point, OH; and nieces Sandra “Sandy” Copley Riggs of Florida, Jordan Julia Riggs of Alaska and Keni Browning Lanagan of Maryville, TN. On the Smith side she is survived by a niece Ginger Adkins Lazarro of Huntington, WV. She is also survived by numerous great-nieces and great-nephews. Funeral services will be conducted at 1:00 PM on Thursday, January 10, 2013 at Henson Mortuary, Barboursville, WV. Burial will follow in White Chapel Memorial Gardens, Barboursville, WV. The family will receive friends from 11:00 AM until service time on Thursday at Henson Mortuary, Barboursville, WV.

“Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night …” 1Thessalonians 5:1-2