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IN LOVING MEMORY OF

William "Bill"

William "Bill" J. Smith Iv Profile Photo

J. Smith Iv

Jun 10, 1949 — Dec 27, 2022

Lumberton

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Obituary

Mr. William John Smith, 73, of Lumberton NC, passed away Tuesday, December 27, 2022, at his home. He was born in San Antonio, TX on June 10, 1949, to the late William and Mary Jane Smith.

William, better known to most as Bill - known to some as Shank, lived a life of service and selflessness. He was an excellent big brother and the oldest of 7. He served in Vietnam in 1969-1970 as an infantryman with the 101st Airborne.
Bill received his BS in Psychology at USC Coastal Carolina and his MPH from UNC Chapel Hill.
He lived, loved, and served in the Myrtle Beach area for years. He was an avid adult recreational softball and volleyball player for the Chairman's Corner teams where he created and fostered many friendships. He worked for the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control for about 11 years before heading to North Carolina. He moved to Robeson County in 1988, and was hired as the Robeson County Health Director, where he has served ever since.
If you speak to those who knew Bill, they will attest to his passion for public health. His true professional goal was bettering the lives of those in the community around him, and he strived for this goal daily. He not only influenced the lives of those in his community and county, but also across the state. He devoted his life to helping ensure as many services as possible were available in Rural Health Departments throughout North Carolina. During his time as Health Director, he received numerous awards and accolades to include: the Rankin Award, Ham Stevens Award, and the Ronald H. Levine Award for Lifetime Achievement. He has sat and was currently sitting on many boards including Palmer Prevention, Robeson County Community in Schools, Robeson County Juvenile Crime Prevention, Robeson County Partnership for Children, and many more. Over Bill's 30+ years at Robeson County Health Department he was instrumental in creating and establishing services that may go unknown to most of the public but have benefited the community. These include trailblazing efforts in Livestock Ordinances and tattoo/piercing regulations which received state and national recognition. His legacy lives on in public health through the plethora of public health professionals that he has trained and mentored throughout the years.
Along with public health, his personal pride and joy in life were his children. He poured every bit of his being into his kids and their passions. He coached their baseball, softball, basketball, and soccer teams throughout the years. He spent years coaching each of their respective teams from the recreational level to the Junior Varsity and Varsity Levels at Lumberton Senior High School [soccer]. If he wasn't the coach, he made a point to show up to games - even if it was just for spectating - he didn't miss a beat. His children took the brunt of his 'encouragement' because that's the way he pushed them all to their best. Bill showed up in every facet of their lives - sports, academic awards, band events, weekly church functions, birthdays, and so much more. He was the epitome of a good father - supportive, dependable, tenacious - and somehow, he managed to be everywhere they were, even if it meant being in two places at the same time, somehow, he did.
Behind parenting and public health, he enjoyed a volunteer coaching career which spanned across the entire community. He coached whether his children were on the team or not, and soccer was his sport of choice. He not only coached soccer at the recreational level, but also with Lumberton Senior High School's Junior Varsity Men's and Women's teams. Bill put everyone through the tryout process but as in all aspects of his life, he was forever rooting for the
underdog. If someone did not make Varsity, he did his best to shape, mold, push, and even sometimes 'roast' them into reaching their full potential.
He also spent multiple years coaching the First Baptist Church women's softball team. He spent countless Sundays after church hitting fly balls for practice and multiple weeknights yelling from the dugout to keep everyone motivated during games. Whether you were his child or not, if Bill was in your corner, you got him for life, and that was a true gift.
Bill lived to serve others in so many more ways than one and he used his talents exceptionally. Whether you knew him as boss, colleague, mentor, confidant, friend, father, coach, or 'regular' you all got the best of Bill. If you had him in any form - consider yourself lucky to have known him. He would hate the thought of us all crying over him - so pick your favorite song, photo, memory, etc. that you have with him, and celebrate with that. The world lost an incredible person who will be missed by many.
Along with his parents he was preceded in death by his brothers Bob and Mike Smith, and his sisters Lou Haseldon and Judy Cooper.

He is survived by his brother Eddie Smith (Angela) and sister Pattie Lowder (Mike); his sons William and Christian Smith; his daughters Allyson Kreps (Matt), Mary Caitlin McLawhorn (Ben) and Caroline Eure (Allen); his grandson Smoak Eure; and the mothers of his children Cathy Grimes and Charmaine Locklear.

The family will receive friends and loved ones for a memorial service at Floyd's Mortuary of Lumberton on Monday January 2nd at 3:00 pm. Afterwards, we will share memories and libations at Arnold's restaurant.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Palmer Prevention, one of Bill's favored charities.
To send flowers with our preferred florist or plant a memorial tree, please visit our flower store.

Funeral Services

Memorial Service

January
2

Monday

Floyd Memorial Chapel

809 East 5th Street, Lumberton, NC 28358

Starts at 3:00 pm

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