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Wayne Allan Smith passed away on February 11, at Miriam Hospital in Providence. Wayne was born on April 4, 1942, to Maynard Smith and Hazel Mary (Maynard) Smith in Providence. Wayne was the eldest of three children; he had two sisters, Lynda Puglia and Beverly Luz. Wayne was born premature and his arrival in the world set a tone that he kept throughout his life, as Wayne always arrived early or on time.
Upon graduating from Hope High School, Wayne proudly enlisted in the United States Air Force. After serving his sentence, he returned home to Rhode Island, where he connected with the love of his life, Sherron (aka Sherry) Holburn. At 22, Wayne proposed to Sherry and the two secretly escaped. Their secret was short-lived, as they could not contain the love and joy that would carry them through the next 57 years of marriage.
Although Wayne obtained college credits during his tenure in the Air Force, once back in the United States, he enrolled at the University of Rhode Island. Always multitasking, Wayne started his career at Raytheon while earning his bachelor’s degree in business administration. Six years after the wedding, Wayne and Sherry were blessed with their eldest daughter, Laurie, followed by Tricia and then Heather. To increase the fight to work full-time at Raytheon and be a dedicated husband and father of three girls, Wayne decided to pursue his master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Rhode Island. As his career and family life flourished, Wayne decided to leave his graduate studies in a double boiler, with just a few credits before completing his MBA.
Wayne loved to tell stories and jokes, run, play cards with friends and dance with Sherry. He loved nothing more than watching her laugh and would do anything to make her smile and show her children how much he loved them. He coached his daughters’ softball teams, threw pool parties and played ball with the German shepherd or the family’s golden retriever. He loved a cold beer or Coca Cola and sang and whistled while working in the yard. Wayne has always been very organized. He made countless lists, recorded data in his little notebook about the fuel consumption of the family cars, how long it took to cook a hamburger to perfection and run a few kilometers. He tried to impose his lists and love of numbers on all family members and was not as successful as he would probably like to have with his daughters, then teenagers, records of their fuel consumption.
The above characteristics served Wayne well in his 39 years as a defense missile contractor for Raytheon. Every day, Wayne went out to work before the sun came up, well dressed in a suit and tie, armed with a pocket protector filled with a gold cross pen, pencil set and his trusted calculator. He told his children about the daily virtue of being the first to go to the office every morning and how it allowed him to come home every night to make Sherry’s homemade meals with his family.
Wayne was a fair, logical, outspoken sniper, and he sometimes softened the blow with his quick wit and sarcasm. His career demands led him to move his family from Massachusetts to Bristol, Tennessee, then to Harvest (Huntsville), Alabama. He and Sherry made dear friends throughout each stage of their journey together. Wayne was proud of the work he did every day, but nothing made him more proud than his children and, eventually, his grandchildren.
Wayne was “Poppy” for Bradley Watson (from Tennessee), Harrison and Gabby Rogers (from Kentucky) and Neala and Liam Thompson (from New York). With Sherry at their side, the two watered their grandchildren with incredible love.
Sherry and Wayne returned to their home state, Rhode Island, where they lived together until Sherry passed away due to Alzheimer’s complications. The day after Sherry’s death, Wayne hired Covid from his retirement home. He fought a tough battle in the hospital for a little over a week and then rejoined his soul mate Sherry.
Wayne leaves his eldest daughter, Laurie Smith-Reeder and her husband, Michael Reeder, of South Carolina, and Laurie’s stepson, Bradley Watson; his middle daughter, Tricia Rogers of Lexington, Kentucky, and Tricia’s sons Harrison and Gabby Rogers; his youngest daughter, Heather Smith Thompson; and Heather’s husband, Matthew Thompson, of Pelham Manor, New York; and his two sons, Neala and Liam Thompson. Wayne also left dear friends in many states and his dear sisters, Lynda Puglia of Narragansett and Beverly Luz of West Warwick and their loving families.
Due to Covid’s restrictions, a private family service will be performed later at the Rhode Island Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Exeter. Instead of flowers, memorials can be made for the Alzheimer’s Association (Alz.org). You can leave your condolences online on the Casa Funeral Iannotti website ON HERE. You can read Sherry’s obituary ON HERE.
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