- Date Of Birth: August 7, 1931
- Date Of Death: November 24, 2015
- State: Georgia
1931 was quite a turbulent year for most of the country. Down in Maury County Tennessee, however, a regular boom town had grown up after the turn of the century with the discovery of rich phosphate deposits. Ulna Clarke Grimes had found employment in the mining operations and he and his wife Velma were raising a family that would come to include seven children. Their daughter Susie was born on August 7, 1931.
She would be the second oldest of their family. In a very roundabout way Susie lived in Florida with her family for several years and later met a young man while visiting a friend in Franklin, Georgia. Roy Clayton Smith, would come to be known as “Smitty”. They were married in 1951 and made Franklin their home. Susie worked at the local hospital. Roy later went to work for Southern Bell and moved their family to Newnan to be closer to his work.
Susie was a very detail oriented person so she became a natural as a record keeper and accounting assistant for several local companies in Newnan. Their young family was quite an active bunch and there were many camping trips that revolved around a love of water sports and the outdoors. Life presented some challenges as she suffered the loss of her daughter Patti in 1966 and later her beloved husband Roy in 2008. Susie was much grounded in her faith and was a very active participant in the life of Westside Baptist Church. Susie’s quiet passage into eternity came on November 24th while she was hospitalized in Tampa, Florida.
She is survived by her children Cindi (and Russ) Tolle; Deborah (and Andy) Melear. She was a loving grandmother to Drew (Connie) Melear, Jeff (Jennifer) Melear, Jennifer (and Jason) Keffer, Brittany Jones, Brian Jones and Kyle York. Her family would continue to grow as great grandchildren were added to the mix. They are Bryce Melear, Brynlee Melear, Alexa Keffer, Noah Keffer, Carleigh Wright Briley Peterson, Ruby Benner, Chloe Melear and Ryan Melear. Her surviving siblings are Doris (Allen) Collier, Jackie (Ron) Mixon and Kathi Carlson.
