John H. Smith

John H. Smith, age 93, formerly of Osceola, went to be with his Lord and Savior on Monday, July 23, 2018 in the Hospice Unit of Upper Valley Medical Center in Troy, Ohio.  John was born May 25, 1925 in Ladysmith, Wisconsin to the late John H. & Bertha M. (Joos) Smith.  In 1929, the Smith family moved to the Elkhart area, where John later graduated from Jimtown High School. On April 17, 1948, he married the former Ms. Lila Grace Reeg in Osceola, Indiana.  She preceded him in death on February 16, 2018.

Surviving is his son Craig H. & daughter in law Victoria (Sayers) Smith of Piqua, Ohio and 4 granddaughters; Kim (Mark) Eller, Steffanie (Wayne) Davey, Nicole (Brian) Schmidt, and Tanya (Kenneth) Stewart.  Surviving as well are 19 great grandchildren.  John is also survived by his brother Charles (Dixie) Smith of Sebring, Florida.  He was preceded in death by his siblings Ruby, Ilene Henry and Ronald Smith.

Graveside services will be held at 1:00 pm Friday, July 27, 2018 at Osceola Cemetery with military honors to follow. Following John’s interment, there will also be a private gathering for his family at a later date in Piqua, Ohio.   Cruz Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services is assisting with arrangements.

John served his country as a US Marine during both WWII and the Korean War before being honorably discharged.  He was employed at Studebaker for over 20 years, and later as an Industrial Engineer with Fore Most Industries until his retirement in 1988.

In his spare time, John served as the President of the Osceola Town Council, and spent many years volunteering his time to the Osceola community.  He was a longtime member of the Osceola United Methodist Church and enjoyed playing fast pitch softball with travel teams throughout the Michiana area.  He also enjoyed coaching his son Craig in Little League for many years.

John will be remembered by his family as a “creative tinkerer” around his house and an avid Chicago Cubs fan, and will be forever remembered as a loving father, grandfather and great-grandfather.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be given to the Town of Osceola for the upkeep of Osceola Cemetery, a project he and Lila believed in wholeheartedly.