Philip H. Smith's Obituary
Services for Philip H. Smith will be held at 10 AM Monday morning at Wesley-McCabe Methodist Church with Reverend Virginia Wall officiating. Burial will follow in Rosewood Park. Services are under the direction of Rader Funeral Home of Longview. Mr. Smith passed away Wednesday evening in a local hospital. Visitation will be Sunday Afternoon from 2-4 PM at the funeral home.
Mr. Smith was born December 7, 1918 in Illinois. He was raised and educated in Michigan and was called into the military service in June, 1941. After being sent to Mineral Wells, Texas he was then sent to officers candidate school at Fort Benning Georgia where he was commissioned. His next stop was camp Maxie in Paris, Texas where he met Johnye and they were married on January 16, 1943.
Major Smith served in the South Pacific, where as a combat intelligence Infantry Officer, he fought in the New Guinea campaigns and was on the initial invasion plus other landings in the Philippine Islands. His unit was then sent to Japan and set up operations at the Japanese Naval Base at Kure, 16 miles from Hiroshima where he was assigned to investigate the ruins of Hiroshima.
Major Smith was awarded the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, American Defense Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Medal, Philippine Liberation Medal, Combat Infantry Badge, and the Japan Occupation Medal.
Mr. Smith and wife Johnye, along with two sons, came to Longview in 1954. They set up a home design and building company, and were responsible for the building of several hundred homes in the Longview area. As an active member of the Longview Builders Association, Mr. Smith served as President 3 times and was given a life membership.
He was a member of Wesley-McCabe United Methodist Church since 1954, where he served as scout master for 10 years, followed by several years of Merit Badge Counseling. Mr. Smith and his sons, Bruce and Barry, all were Eagle Scouts. He made scouting fun and at one time had 55 boys in his troup. All loved the camping, float trips, and National Scout Jamborees. He also built the parsonage for Wesley United Methodist Church, now Wesley- McCabe United Methodist Church, and was Building Chairman of the Education Building Program.
He was a charter member of the Longview-Greggton Rotary Club, serving as president as well as other club offices. He maintained 40 years of continuous weekly attendance and received the Paul Harris Fellow award. Mr. Smith also served as a director of the Longview Symphony for several years and was active in their activities. He loved to hunt, fish, travel, and garden.
Those left to cherish his memory are his wife, Johnye; sons and daughters-in-law, Bruce and Alice and Barry and Debbie; four grandchildren, Steven, Travis, Zackary, Nicholas and their wives; three great grandchildren, Marrisa, Payton, and Jayden; sister Maxine Moerdyk of Grand Rapids, Michigan; numerous nieces and nephews and his special loving caregivers Stacy Belt, Sherry Goldman, and Beverly Gibson.
Memorials may be made to Wesley-McCabe Methodist Church or The Rotary Foundation c/o the Longview Greggton Rotary Club, PO BOX 1166, Longview, Texas 75606. A memorial guestbook may be signed online at www.raderfh.com.
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