William David Smith

William David Smith, 72, passed away at 5:40 AM on Monday, February 6, 2023, at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. Visitation will be held 6:00pm to 8:00pm, Thursday, February 16, 2023, at Snow’s Funerals and Cremations at Macon Memorial Park. Memorial services will be held 2:30pm, Friday, February 17, 2023, at the committal shelter of Georgia Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery in Milledgeville.

He was born on February 5, 1951, in Macon, Georgia to the late William Fred and Guynelle (Thigpen) Smith. He grew up in Macon, Georgia and spent most of his life in the Macon area, settling most recently in Forsyth. David graduated from Willingham High School in 1970 and attended Georgia College before being drafted into the Navy in 1971. He was stationed in Virginia Beach for one year prior to transferring to the Charleston Naval Base for five years. While in the Navy, David served on the USS Von Steuben submarine off the coast of Scotland.

David, his first wife Edith Smith, and oldest son Brandon, moved to Byron, Georgia before settling in Lizella, where they welcomed Brent and Blake. They enjoyed living next to David’s parents, Fred and Guynelle. David and Edith later divorced in 2001. David worked as a computer engineer for Measurex/Honeywell before working as a contractor for Georgia Pacific. He started his own consulting business, Industrial Software Control, in the mid-1980s.

David retired in 2015 and married his longtime love, Lisa Harshman, on March 31 outside Las Vegas, NV. Together they made countless beach trips, toured the country on motorcycles, sailed the coast of Georgia and South Carolina, camped, and attended concerts for Paul McCartney, Jimmy Buffett and The Rolling Stones. They moved to Forsyth in 2019 and enjoyed playing guitar, visiting grandchildren, and restoring Lisa’s 1967 Mercury Cougar.

David is survived by his wife, Lisa (Harshman) Smith. Also surviving are three sons; Brandon (Meg) Smith of Decatur, Brent (Erin) Smith of Forsyth, Blake (Amanda) Smith of Roswell; stepson Reed Baxter of Woodstock; and sister Durinda (Bill) Massey of Savannah. He was a proud grandpa to seven grandchildren; Leah, Lucy, Eloise, Theo, Kip, Juniper and Darby Smith.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to PanCAN - Pancreatic Cancer Action Network at www.pancan.org.