Katharine Ann Keith-Smith Obituary

Katharine Ann “Kathy” Keith-Smith, 67, a life-long resident of Uhrichsville, passed away at Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland on Saturday, April 19, 2025. Her death comes after complications from a hard-fought battle with Stage IV Lung Cancer that she bravely faced since her diagnosis. Kathy was the second child of six children to the late Benjamin “Benny” William Keith and Janice “Janny” Arlene (Orr) Keith.

On January 11, 1973 Kathy married Harold Craig Smith of Tippecanoe, Ohio in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Being too young to get married in Ohio at the time, they made the long trip to get married in a small ceremony. Kathy and Harold shared 52 years of marriage and traveled the country together, visiting nearly every state in the continental US.

Kathy and Harold had four children together and in their later years fostered a fifth into adulthood. Bobbie (Shawn) Hitchcock, Harold Craig (Julie) Smith II, Danny (Chris) Kauffman, and Christopher Smith. Kathy deeply loved all of her children and enjoyed keeping them close to her. It was not often that she went more than a day without speaking to any of them. She never forgot their son, Anthony, who was born too early for intervention and passed away shortly after birth.

In addition to her husband and children, Kathy is survived by her nine spoiled grandchildren who will miss their Mamaw forever; Tori (Alec) Stull, Derek (Amanda) Stewart, Tyler (Natalie) Kauffman, Emily “Emma” (Isiah Coleman) Stewart, Garret Gray, Gabriella Gray, Carter Gray, Aaron Gray, and Joey Smith . Six beloved great-grandchildren; Isabelle Stull, Delilah Coleman, Jesse Stewart, Bennett Stewart, Harper Coleman, and Benjamin Stull.

Kathy is also survived by her five siblings; Sandy Jones, Ruth (Kevin) Espenschied, Mary Jo Keith, Timmy Keith, Heather Keith, and her dearest sister-in-law Barbara Smith. She cherished her six nieces & nephews; fifteen great-nieces and great-nephews and all of their children.

Her special nephew, Heath Jones, dear cousins; Steve (Allen Murphy) Parrish and Amy Famal-Slutz, and by her special friends, Angie Walker and Lynn Demuth who were a great help and support to her in her final months.

Kathy was a strong-willed and tenacious person that will be deeply missed. Her family was everything to her, and in her 67 years of life she took care of many people both professionally as a home health aid and personally, regardless if they were family or a friend that one of her children brought home. Kathy loved an inappropriate joke as much as she loved good music and good food. Her cooking will be sorely missed by everyone that knew her, but especially her kids and grandchildren. She never let anything deter her from finding a solution to a problem. She could help someone out of a tough spot with quickness that defied logic and always found a way to make resources stretch to make sure everyone had enough to go around. She was most proud of her ability to do complex math problems in her head and could remember most anything she said or did for years with precision. Her family and friends will miss sitting on her porch with her and having a good gossip and telling stories of wild things the family had said or done. None of them will ever forget all of the laughter they shared with her.

In addition to her parents, she was also preceded by her son, Anthony William Smith; her father-in-law and mother-in-law Otha R. and Florene Smith and Grandparents; William Jasper (Wilma) Keith and Mary Dorothy (Harold) Alexander and William (Ruth) Orr.

To honor Kathy’s wishes, a viewing will be held privately for the immediate family only. The family will be hosting a celebration of life dinner for all of her friends and family at a later date. We encourage everyone to wear their favorite shade of blue, which was Kathy’s favorite color, in honor of her memory.

Kathy’s family would encourage you to donate to the American Lung Association or the Lung Cancer Research Foundation in her name. As a family we encourage everyone to quit smoking or vaping, preferably never starting at all, so that fewer families and people are affected by this devastating disease.