Curtis W. Smith

Curtis W Smith was born in Arkansas on April 7, 1932 to Clarice Gray and Elmer Cecil Smith. One of three children, Curt was pre-deceased by his sister, Mary Mascolino. His brother, James Elmer Smith lives in California.

Curt’s grandfather and father were watchmakers in Arkansas and when Curt was 8 years old the family relocated to Evanston, Illinois in search of work. Curt’s grandmother made sure that he knew the Lord from birth, and after they moved, the family continued to attend the Baptist church where Curt joined the Boy Scouts. Curt accepted the Lord and was baptized at 13.

Curt joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps when he was in High School and was in the Honor Company as well as the Illinois National Guard. Curt was honorably discharged from the National Guard on April 15, 1951 and joined the US Marine Corps the next day and served in Korea. Curt was a career Marine, honorably serving his country for 26 years. He earned promotions to Drill Instructor in 1962, Gunnery Sergeant in 1969 and First Sergeant in 1975.

Leaving the corps briefly to take care of his mother, he stayed in the reserve. After she died, Curt rejoined the Corps, going back to active duty in 1962 in Quantico, Virginia. Curt served 2 tours in Vietnam and received meritorious Navy awards for each tour. The first award was for helping build a village orphanage and school in 1966, and a second one for operational excellence in 1971. Curt was an expert marksman and received numerous good conduct awards.

He was Drill Instructor in Parris Island, South Carolina and then deployed to Vietnam. He returned to San Diego as a DI, then back to Vietnam. After Viet Nam, he went to recruiter school and he finished number one in a class of 135, and was awarded a sword for finishing at the top of his class. Curt was voted Columbus Ohio Marine Serviceman of the Year in 1970.

Terry Galvan met Curt in the summer of 1968 while he was in Corpus Christi, Texas conducting summer training. Terry, as Curt said, floored him when she came walking through the door, so he asked her to dance. They began dating in July. He returned to Ohio in the fall and they had a long distance romance until getting engaged in November and married December 21, 1968 in Corpus Christi.

While still a teenager, Curt learned to play poker and it remained a hobby for most of his life. Curt also loved classic cars. One of his first cars was a 1937 LaSalle convertible with a rumble seat, the only car he regretted selling. He continued to collect classic cars such as an MG TD, an Austin Healey and a Jaguar XKE.

Six months after leaving the Corps, Curt opened his first tropical fish store in Austin. He eventually had 3 stores, including one in Killeen. When health problem began, he sold the stores and they moved to Belton, Texas. Curt and Terry joined First Baptist Church in Salado in February of 2002, and remain members.

Curt had three great loves in his life: his Lord, his wife Terry and the Marine Corps. Curt is survived by his wife, Terry and brother James.