Rev. Jerry Aylwin Smith

Reverend Gerald (Jerry) A. Smith, at the age of 77 and a Catholic priest for 50 years, died on December 6, 2015, in Austin, Texas. He was born on January 29, 1938, in Houston, Texas, to Aylwin Lorenzo Smith and Nadine Wright Smith.

Rev. Smith was educated at St. Anne’s Catholic School and St. Thomas High School, both in Houston, Texas. He studied philosophy at St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston, Texas, and theology at the American College of the Immaculate Conception at the University of Louvain in Belgium. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 26, 1965, by Most Reverend Richard H. Ackerman, Bishop of Covington, at the chapel of the American College of Louvain.

Rev. Smith was an avid and constant supporter of Catholic school education. He served as associate pastor at the parishes of St. Mary of the Assumption in West, St. Mary in Taylor, St. Mary in Temple, St. Louis in Austin, St. Thomas More in Austin, St. Catherine of Siena in Austin, and St. Mary Cathedral in Austin. He also served as Chaplain at Holy Cross and Brackenridge Hospitals in Austin. Rev. Smith retired in June of 2002.

Rev. Smith was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Janet Heyl and nephew George Heyl. He is survived by his nephew Mark Heyl of Mountain View, California, and niece Alex Desjarlais of Kalispell, Montana.

Funeral services will be at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, 4800 Convict Hill Road, Austin, Texas, with Visitation on Thursday, December 10, at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Rosary and Vigil at 7:00 p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, December 11, with the Most Reverend Joe S. Vásquez as the principal celebrant and Most Reverend Daniel E. Garcia concelebrating. Burial will be at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 12, at Forest Park Westheimer Cemetery, 12800 Westheimer Road, Houston, Texas. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church.