Martha Martin Smith Vandervoort

Martha Martin Smith Vandervoort, born February 21, 1955, died February 28, 2015. She was the wife of Dr. Kenneth Luckie Vandervoort. She was preceded in death by her parents, Maury Drane Smith and Lucile West Martin Smith. A native of Montgomery, she graduated from Jefferson Davis High School in 1973. She then attended the University of Alabama, where she received her B.A. in Pastoral Care and Counseling in 1977 and her M.A. in Counseling and Social Services in 1978. While at the Capstone, she served as Assistant to the Vice President of Student Affairs, on the Student Government Association, and as a member of the Kappa Delta sorority. After completing her education, she worked as a youth minister at First United Methodist Church of Montgomery, Patient Representative at UAB Hospital, Director of Career Counseling at Birmingham Southern College, and a Human Resources Consultant at Methodist Hospital of Memphis. She moved to Anniston with her family in 1987. Over the years, she served in multiple leadership roles in the community. She was an active member of Anniston First United Method Church and was involved with the Angel Tree Summer Day Camp, Meals on Wheels, the Anniston Soup Bowl, and the Community Enabler of Calhoun County. She served as Mission Convenor of the North Alabama Conference of the United Methodist Church and was coordinator of the Children of Chernobyl, a summer program for children from Belarus. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the Community Foundation of Calhoun County. She was instrumental in converting the Anniston/Calhoun Junior Service League into the Junior League of Calhoun County and she worked hard to bring Habitat for Humanity to Calhoun County, serving as board president of each of these organizations. Additionally, she was a member of the Parnassus Study Club and the Anniston Garden Guild, and a sustaining member of the Maskers' Ball and Revelers' Krewe. Martha served as Executive Director of Interfaith Ministries of Calhoun County since 2007, during which time she oversaw all programs of the agency. Interfaith Ministries was proudly accredited by the Standards for Excellence Institute in 2014. Martha had a deep love and commitment to her entire family. A lover of cooking, gardening, and all things outdoors, she found much joy and peace from God's simple gifts. Picking blackberries, walking, music, writing letters and admiring sunsets over Lake Guntersville were among her favorite activities. Martha dedicated her life to serving others and embodied the mission statement of Interfaith Ministries, "Bringing God's People Together To Serve God's People In Need." She is survived by her husband, Dr. Kenneth Luckie Vandervoort; daughter, Dr. Lucile Martin Vandervoort Morris, of Birmingham (Dr. Andrew Charles Morris); son, Dr. Kenneth Luckie Vandervoort Jr., of Coronado, Calif.; son, Dr. William Maury Vandervoort, of Birmingham (Nancy Stimpson Vandervoort); sister, Sally Drane Smith Legg, of Birmingham (William Anderson Legg Jr.); brother, Maury Drane Smith Jr., of Randolph, Vermont (Adele Turgeon Smith). Her memorial service will be held at Anniston First United Methodist Church at 11 a.m. on today March 3, 2015. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Interfaith Ministries, PO Box 1444, Anniston, AL 36202.