Paul Smith

Paul H. Smith VIRGINIA BEACH - Paul H. Smith, former assistant superintendent of Norfolk Public Schools, passed away Oct. 5, 2008, in his home at Westminster Canterbury. Paul was born in Wilmington, N.C., Dec. 26, 1919, to Luther Gray Smith and Sarah Elizabeth Wolff Smith. After the death of his father in 1930, Paul moved to Norfolk with his mother and two brothers. Paul was a product of the Norfolk Public Schools, graduating from his beloved Maury High School in June 1938, where he was a member of the varsity basketball team for three years. After high school graduation, Paul attended the Norfolk Division of the College of William and Mary (ODU), where he played basketball and was a member of the track team. In 1940, he entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard Apprentice School and completed their four-year program in 2 ½ years. Drafted in April 1944, Paul was sent overseas where he was assigned to the 1st Army, 1st Division, 26th Infantry. He was captured by the Germans in the Hürtgen Forest and held in four different prison camps. While in the final camp, Paul witnessed the Allied bombing of Dresden, Germany. After his release in May 1945, Paul spent two weeks in a hospital in Reims, France, and passed through Camp Lucky Strike (in France) before his return by boat to the United States in June 1945. Upon his release from the Army, Paul returned to work at the Norfolk Shipyard. In February 1947, Paul returned to the Norfolk Division of the College of William and Mary, and in 1948 transferred to the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, where he majored in business and accounting. After graduation in 1949, Paul began his 37-year career with Norfolk Public Schools by accepting a teaching position at Granby High School, where he taught business and math and coached basketball. While teaching and coaching at Granby, Paul earned his master's degree in education administration from The College of William and Mary, and also taught evening and summer classes at the Norfolk Division of William and Mary. In 1957, Paul was appointed director of accounting and deputy clerk for Norfolk Public Schools. He was appointed Assistant Superintendent of Business and Finance in 1968 and prior to his retirement in 1986, was appointed Sr. Assistant Superintendent. Paul was active in professional, community and church affairs. He had been especially involved in ODU athletics, including both men's and women's basketball and the Athletic Scholarship Fund. He was a member of Thalia United Methodist Church where he had served on the finance and building committees. He also was a past member of the American Cancer Society, the Optimist Club, the Norfolk Sports Club, and the Maury Foundation. He enjoyed tennis and golf, and was a proud member of the Honey Bee Hole-in-One Club. Paul was predeceased by his parents and brothers, Fred and Glenwood. He is survived by his loving and devoted wife, Betty Smith; their two daughters, Linda Pickard of Virginia Beach and Jean Barry and husband Steve of Brentwood, Tenn.; son, Bill Gossett and wife Dana of Itasca, Miss.; five grandchildren, Allison Hughes, Kevin Gossett, Scott Barry, Kurt Gossett and Robert Barry; four great-grandchildren, George, Justin and Ava Hughes and Chase Gossett; his sister-in-law, Frances Knudson; special niece, Nancy Jenkins and husband Jack; and loving brother and sister-in-law, Sam and Marie Doyle. There will be a memorial service at Westminster Canterbury Wednesday at 11 a.m. with a reception in the Bayview Room. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that a donation be made to Westminster Canterbury in memory of Paul. Condolences may be offered to the family at www.hollomon-brown.com. "God saw you getting tired And a cure was not to be So he put his arms around you And whispered, 'Come home with me'."