Sue Jobe Poirier was born on August 31, 1937 to Paul and Dorotha Jobe in the town of Parma, Missouri. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to Blytheville, Arkansas. The Jobe family lived in Blytheville until she and her sister Kay graduated from Blytheville High School whereupon the family settled in Sikeston, Missouri with their younger sister and brother, Susan and Tom Jobe.
Sue attended Memphis State University before transferring to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. She joined the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and earned a BA in Education, with other academic honors. At Arkansas, she met her husband-to-be, Don S. Smith of Stephens, Arkansas, who was attending Law School at the University. Don and Sue married in 1962 and soon moved to Atlanta where Don taught at the Emory University School of Law. The Smiths moved back to Little Rock, Arkansas in 1967. Sue taught English and composition at Shorter College in North Little Rock. In 1974, her husband’s law career took them to Washington, DC.
They had four sons: Gordon and Perry Smith of Chevy Chase, Maryland, Matt Smith of Ocean View, Delaware, and Richard Smith of Washington, DC.
Sue took great pride in her involvement in her sons' education and was President of the Somerset Elementary PTA in Chevy Chase and a frequent volunteer and fundraiser at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and The Landon School in Bethesda, Maryland.
Staying true to her Arkansas roots, Sue was working at the White House during the Clinton Administration when Don died suddenly in 1993. She continued her tenure there, and in 1995 assumed the role of Director of Agency Liaison for Hillary Clinton from 1995 to 1998.
In 1999, Sue happily married William Poirier Jr. of Westfield, Massachusetts. The loving couple retired to the home of their dreams on Frost Fish Creek in North Chatham on Cape Cod. Ever busy even in retirement, Sue actively served on numerous community boards, volunteered at the Eldredge Public Library and at the Chatham Elementary School, and worked at the thrift shop at the First Methodist Church of Chatham.
She was an avid and prolific reader, wine enthusiast, international traveler, and a loving wife, mother, and grandmother. She loved vacations at the beach with her family, hosting numerous friends and her growing brood of grandchildren at their Cape household, catching, cooking and eating seafood (especially Cape lobsters), flying her kite, subduing crossword puzzles, knitting blankets for her family, and working out in the gym at Ocean Edge Golf Club.
A sports superfan, Sue loved all manner of football and baseball games -- especially those featuring the Arkansas Razorbacks, the New England Patriots, and the Boston Red Sox – as well sports infotainment shows such as “Pardon the Interruption.”
Sue was known for her keen intelligence, quick wit, and infectious laugh. She was always a fun and generous companion who touched many lives and will be deeply missed.
Survivors include her husband William Poirier Jr, sons Gordon Smith and his wife Diane, Perry Smith and his wife Elisabeth, Matt Smith, and Richard Smith, stepson William Poirier III and his wife Debbie, stepson Andrew Poirier, grandchildren Amanda Poirier, Perry John Smith, Aiden Poirier, Catherine Smith, Austin Futty, Don Smith, William Poirier IV, and Annette Smith. Sue is also survived by sister, Kay Mahony, and brother in-law Emon Mahony of El Dorado, Arkansas, and by her sister Susan Patton of Fredericksburg, Texas. Preceding her in death were her parents Paul and Dorotha Jobe of Sikeston, Missouri and brother Tom Jobe of London, England.
The family plans to hold a private memorial service for Sue in Cape Cod over the Thanksgiving Holiday. For online condolences, please visit www.nickersonfunerals.com.
SHARE OBITUARYSHARE
v.1.15.0