Kathy Smith

Kathy Jo Newman Smith, 60, of Algood, died Wednesday morning, Sept. 4, 2013 at her home surrounded by family. A memorial will be held Saturday, Sept. 14 at 1 p.m. at Stevens Street Baptist Church. The family will receive friends at the church from 11 a.m. until the service begins. Kathy was born on March 23, 1953 to the late Willard H. and Beulah Maude Fields Newman in the Buffalo Valley community of Putnam County. She graduated from Upperman High School in 1971 and went on to earn a bachelors degree in education from Tennessee Tech University in 1975, the first in her family to attend college. After graduating, she taught at Upperman High from 1975 to 1979, later returning as an English teacher at Baxter Elementary and Cornerstone Middle School from 1995 to 2011, where she was honored as Upper Cumberland Region Teacher of the Year in 2004 and Cornerstone Teacher of the Year in 2011. A loving, devoted mother, she postponed her career for more than a decade to raise her two children, instilling in them her compassion, confidence and spirit of adventure, along with a love and appreciation for music, education and popular culture. During her time away from teaching, she remained highly involved in education, as a volunteer at Northeast Elementary, a Cub Scouts den mother and patient tutor to her son and daughter. In her free time, Kathy enjoyed tending to her flowers, hosting her annual Fourth of July cookout parties, reading, dancing and travel, as well as watching games shows (a habit she inherited from her mother) and long phone conversations with her friends and family (including daily calls with her sister Carol). Kathy is survived by her husband of 33 years, Donald L. Smith (whom she married on July 12, 1980 in Putnam County); daughter Noelle Smith; son Dane Smith; sisters Nancy Gail Newman, Carol (Raburn) Billingsley and Joan (John H.) Milton of Chattanooga; nephew and nieces: Larry Milton, Mechelle (Tarek) Forgani, Lisa (Kenny) Freer and Rachael Billingsley; and great nieces and nephews: Amber, Zach and Hannah Forgani, Seth Freer and Ryder Billingsly. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children's Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.