After PHS, Texas Tech and Lubbock was my home for the next 6 years. I met and married another Smith while we were students at Tech. I finished “on time” in ’64 and when Hugh graduated in “66 (after several different majors) began a military life. Hugh resigned after 7 years. We lived in England for three of those years. What a wonderful
experience! By the time we returned to the States, we had two sons and another baby on the way. Hugh went to VietNam and I moved to Denton, TX, where our daughter was born. I was a full time Mom until our children – oh yes, number four – 3rd boy- arrived in 1971 – began college. We lived in Hurst, TX after leaving the Air Force and in 1977, we moved to Joshua, TX. When our oldest son graduated in 1982, I realized that we were possibly looking at 3 in college at one time. That meant that it would be a good idea to enter the work force.
I had taught high school English after graduating from Texas Tech at Idalou. It was time to dust off the teaching skills – as if I had not used them for the past 20 years while our four children grew up! I was blessed by being employed by Joshua ISD for the next 18 years. I taught English, Spanish and English as a Second Language.
I retired in 2001 from Joshua, but I returned to teach Spanish in a much smaller district near Rio Vista – Blum ISD in 2004. The classes are small which means that I can actually get to know the students and hopefully impart more than just a knowledge of the Spanish language. What a blessing to be in a small district! Most days I feel like a giggley girl because “I get to go to work” .
My husband was an F-100 pilot in the AF, an airline pilot with Braniff, and finally a traveling minister. It took a few years for him to follow the call on his life. We have had thirty plus years of a life of faith. In 1995 he was in a motorcycle/pickup accident which changed our lives tremendously. He is physically fit, just at the beginning stages of Alzheimer disease.
Our oldest son, Mike lives in CA and flies for United. He has 2 wonderful boys and a beautiful wife, Teri. Gary, our Englishman, is a CPA for Ernst & Young in NY City. He lives in Trumbull, CT. with his wife, Leigh and their 2 daughters. Our daughter, Diana, lives in Ft. Worth with her almost driving son, Trevor. The youngest son moved to Baltimore, MD last January. He is still a Texan yearning to return home.
I’m looking forward to seeing more PHS alums in April ’06.