Roscoe C. Smith

Roscoe graduated from Wynn High School in 1953 in Garland, Arkansas. After high school, he became a farmer in Garland. In 1955 he married Queen Esther James and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada.

Roscoe worked as a porter in two different hotels before he decided to advance his career as a welder, after attending Las Vegas High School at night. He took great pride in designing and creating decorative wrought iron structures, but later decided to switch to another vocation. In 1971, he attended dealer’s school and worked as a dealer until retirement.

Throughout Roscoe’s life, he enjoyed fishing, hunting and helping friends. One day in his youth, he jumped in the Red River and caught a fish with his bare hands. That was the beginning of what he called “hand fishing.” Roscoe and his brother, Nimrod Jr., began to hand fish instead of using a regular pole. They would jump in, go underwater, grab a fish, surface, toss the fish to shore, go under again and catch another fish. Eventually, the brothers would catch so many fish that their mother started canning them. However, his hand fishing venture ended abruptly when he caught something that felt more like a snake than a fish. He enjoyed many other unusual ventures, such as rodeo bulldogging and breaking wild horses.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Nimrod and Vena Smith; siblings, George Smith, Ira Smith, Nimrod Smith Jr., and daughter, Larreda (Reda) McCormick.

Roscoe leaves to celebrate his life: his loving wife, Queen Esther Smith; a daughter, Deborah Smith-McMillan (Lee); a sister, Barbara West (Hollie) of Bethesda, Maryland; grandsons, Jared McMillan, Celester Mayfield, Allen McCormick; granddaughter, Dedra Mayfield, all of Las Vegas, Nevada and a host of nephews, nieces, cousins, great grandchildren and friends.