Lex Smith

Lex Burke Smith, M.D., died peacefully on February 12, 2019, at the age of 96, under Hospice care from abdominal cancer at the health center at Vantage House, 5400 Vantage Point Road, Columbia, MD.Dr. Smith was born and raised in Teague, Texas. He began his education in the Teague Public Schools at age 6 and graduated at age 16. He attended Westminster Episcopal Junior College at Tehuacana, Texas for one year before finishing up pre-med studies at the University of Texas Austin. He started medical School at the University Of Texas School Of Medicine in Galveston, Texas in July 1941, beginning the year round medical school experience 3 months early. He completed the 4 year program in 3 years as a result of the speed up during World War II. He had a Navy internship at the San Diego hospital and the 5000 bed US Naval hospital at Aiea Heights, Hawaii. Afterwards he was assigned to the US Naval hospital in Guam. He was assigned to be the ship medical officer on the APL33 in September 1945 and returned to the US and worked as the ward medical officer at Camp Wallace, Texas, a separation center. In August 1946 he began and completed a 3 year residency in internal medicine at the Veterans Hospital in Dallas under Dr. Tinsley R. Harrison, the chief of medicine at Southwestern Medical School. He began his practice in internal medicine in September 1949 in Midland, Texas. He remained there until recalled to active duty and reported to the Naval Hospital at Camp Pendleton, California. That duty was completed in 1954 and he worked 3 ½ months at the Scripps Metabolic Clinic in La Jolla, California.He obtained a one year residency in psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital to go along with his internal medicine specialty. He decided during his second semester of the one year residency to change his specialty to psychiatry and completed his residency in psychiatry at Hopkins. He obtained the position of medical director and assistant professor at the Hopkins School of Hygiene for 2 years doing research on the response of infants reacting with their mothers. From the time he finished his residency, he devoted ½ day a week to the Department of Psychiatry. He served in several different ways but in recent years he devoted himself to helping the 1st and 2nd year Psychiatric residents perform psychotherapy with their patients. He was also particularly interested in the activities of the Maryland Psychiatric Society (MPS) and served in several different capacities including president from 1977-1978. In gratitude for his extraordinary service, the MPS presented him its first Lifetime of Service Award in 2000. He married Margaret Elizabeth Wade on August 18, 1947. They had three children, James Lex Smith of Houston, Texas, Mary Beatrice Quillen of Ellicott City, Maryland and Barbara Ann Buckingham of Bedford, New Hampshire. He is survived by his three children, six grandchildren and four great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife of 68 years, Margaret, his sisters, Beth Louise Smith Spencer and Bennie Lee Smith Hill. No celebration of life or memorial service is planned. He and his wife have donated their bodies to science. A gravesite burial service will be held at the family plot at the Greenwood Cemetery in Teague, Texas at a later date.Donations in honor of Dr. Smith can be made to your favorite charity.