Dr. James R. Smith, aged 87, died at home of natural causes on November 17, 2024.
He is survived by his loving wife of 58 years, Elaine Schmitt Smith; his three children Jimmy R. Smith (Ellen), Christie Burger (Eric), and David Smith (Erin); and his grandchildren Bradley, Garrett, Owen, and Izzie – all of whom he left no doubt how much he cared for them.
Dr. Smith liked to say he was a geo-cultural product of the Cumberland Mountains and the Nashville Basin. Born in Celina, Tennessee on June 28, 1937, the only child of Baby Reneau and Roy B. Smith, he spent his later childhood and adolescence on a farm in Pasquo at the rural western edge of Davidson County. His formal education consisted of Nashville-area Public Schools, David Lipscomb College, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Tennessee Medical School.
In 1967, after four years of internship and residency, he moved to, and began private solo practice of medicine in Clarksville, Tennessee. This practice continued for 40 years until retirement in 2007 at the age of 70. During the last years of practice, he delighted at the privilege of seeing third-generation patients, having had treated and cared for their parents and grandparents as patients previously.
After retirement, Dr. Smith continued his intellectual curiosity on matters of philosophy, cultures, religion, and humanity. He shared his observations, beliefs, and questions with his children and grandchildren in always-welcome handwritten letters up until the time came when he could no longer hold a pen. He was a Christian in the truest sense of the word – humble, giving, forgiving, caring, and always treating everyone he met as he would want to be treated himself.
His spiritual body has returned to God, who gave it. His earthly body will be placed in Greenwood Cemetery. Public visitation will be held at Neal-Tarpley-Parchman funeral home from 12:00-2:00 on Friday, November 22, with a private family burial to follow.
Arrangements are entrusted to Neal Tarpley Parchman Funeral Home, 1510 Madison Street, Clarksville, TN 37040; (931)645-6488. Online condolences and live streaming of the service may be made and viewed at www.nealtarpleyparchman.com.