Funeral Service for Ms. Kathryn Michele Smith, 60, of Deatsville, Alabama, will be Friday, September 16, 2022, at 1:00 pm at the Chapel of Radney Funeral Home. Rev. Jerry Wheeles will officiate. Burial will follow in the Mellow Valley Baptist Church Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Thursday, September 15, 2022, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Radney Funeral Home.
Ms. Smith passed away on Tuesday, September 13, 2022, at University of Alabama Hospital (Birmingham). She was born on December 1, 1961, in Alexander City, Alabama to James Alford Blankenship and Myra Dell Wheeles Blankenship. Kathryn graduated from Stanhope Elmore High School in Millbrook in 1980. Afterwards, she pursued an education and career in the medical field. Marriage took her to Mellow Valley in 1981 where she spent many years close to her grandparents, Rev. Elmer and Kate Wheeles. She was a member of Mellow Valley Baptist Church and raised her son, Adam, close to her family.
Kathryn was an avid gardener, loved hummingbirds, playing her piano, and singing. She had an extraordinarily strong bond with her three sisters, as well as her nieces and nephews. She took great pride in being the First Born and always joked that she needed to be the first at everything. She loved laughing, was often a comedian, and a pot stirrer. But overall, she was a great confidant and a nurturer to all. Her love for her son was unparalleled and her next favorite companion was her chihuahua, Scooby. She was competitive, loved card games, Heads Up, Wordle, and Spoons (even though she lost more than anyone else).
She is survived by her son, Jesse Adam Smith; sisters, Melissa Kay Shirley (Jeff), Melanie Ann Thompson (Larry), Kristi Marie Brantley (Dan); nephews and nieces, Jordan Hosek (Katie), Myra Ashley McAvinew (Shane), Jonathan Shirley, Christopher Shirley (Kayla), Alina Shirley, Anthony Evans (Clarisa), Katie Osborne (Russell), Emily Petrie, Nicholas Petrie, Cora Lee Falls (Cody), Samantha Dell Abney (Haylee), Christopher Woods (KaCie), Morgan Brantley, Bud Brantley, Rianne Brantley, Addy Kate Brantley, several great nieces and nephews, and many treasured aunts and uncles.
She was preceded in death by her parents and all four of her grandparents.
