Ronald C. Smith

Ronald C. “Ron” Smith, 95, of Wamego, Kansas, passed away on Friday, April 11, 2014 from congestive heart failure.   Ron was born November 21, 1918 to Cury and Florabel (Adkins) Smith in Hanford, California. Ron attended Kings River Grade School (eight grades but only four teachers), then Hanford High School, graduating in June 1935. He attended California Polytechnic at San Luis Obispo, California, where he married Gloria E. Davis on August 9, 1940. They later divorced. He married Doreen Mary Morisette in San Diego, California on August 3, 1944 after a whirlwind courtship lasting just 10 days.   Ron served in the U. S. Army Air Force during World War II, and he managed a grocery store and an anhydrous ammonia plant before becoming a postal carrier for the Wamego community in 1957. He retired from the USPS in 1983 after 26 years of service.   Ron enjoyed the small pleasures of life, from a well-made cup of coffee and daily walks downtown to watching K-State athletics and rereading favorite Louis L’Amour books. He was a leader in the Boy Scouts of America, serving as a Cubmaster, an Assistant Scoutmaster – Camping, and a Scoutmaster, and he was a member of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church.   Ron is survived by his wife of 69 years, Doreen; three children: daughter Polly Marks and husband Herb of Marina Del Rey, California; son Michael C. and wife Linda of Palmyra, Nebraska; son Stephen and wife Ellen of Parkville, Missouri; six granddaughters scattered across the country (Connecticut, Louisiana, Texas, Nebraska, and Missouri); and eleven great-grandchildren.   In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Ron’s name to St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, the Wamego Public Library, the Wamego Health Ministry, or the American Heart Association and left in care of Stewart Funeral Home, PO Box 48, Wamego, KS 66547.  A visitation will be held at Stewart Funeral Home on Wednesday, April 16 from 6 pm to 7:30 pm. Memorial services will be held at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church on Thursday, April 17 at 10 am followed by a luncheon. A private family burial will take place at the Wamego Cemetery.