Anson Henry Smith

Feb. 26, 1918 - Sept. 18, 2009

Longtime Corvallis resident and Oregon State University booster Anson Henry "Pete" Smith died Friday, Sept. 18, at Regency Park Place in Corvallis. He was 91 years old. Pete had only recently moved to Regency Park Place for its assisted living services. He was a resident of Stoneybrook Lodge in Corvallis from 2006 until recently, and lived for several decades at the end of Jackson Avenue.

Pete was born in 1918 in Seattle to Abram and Esther Smith. He had five siblings, all of who predeceased him. Pete's mother, Esther, was a member of the Michener family, which includes the author James Michener, and Pete once attended one of the annual Michener family reunions in Bucks County, Pa.

While "Pete" was not his official name, Pete had been given this nickname from birth because of his grandfather, Anson B. Michener of Virginia, who was also nicknamed "Pete."

Pete's parents had originally lived in Philadelphia, but moved to Seattle, where his father taught journalism at the University of Washington. When Pete was young, the family moved around from Seattle to Walla Walla, Wash., to Phoenix, Ariz., to Calipatria, Calif., before settling in Portland.

While his father was originally a newspaper man, the family was forced during the Great Depression to live in a tent camp and pick fruit for a living. Pete earned money as a newspaper boy in various locations and lent funds to his parents for their move to California.

Pete spent his first two years of high school in Calipatria, where he played basketball, was sophomore class president and joined the Boy Scouts. Then the family moved to Portland and Pete graduated from Franklin High School.

In 1935, the Sigma Nu Fraternity at Oregon State College recruited Pete, and he moved to Corvallis and enrolled with a major in forestry, having spent some of his best times hiking in the forests. However, he started working for the Oregon State bookstore in 1936 and took an interest in business, eventually graduating in 1940 in education. Pete worked his way through college without parental assistance.

At OSC, Pete met the love of his life, Yvonne "Evon" Hollenbeck, and they were married in November 1940 in the Corvallis building then occupied by the DeMoss-Durdan Funeral Home (formerly the Congregational church). Pete had been in ROTC at OSC, and upon completion of their honeymoon on the Oregon coast, they returned to their home in Corvallis to receive papers calling Pete to active duty in the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant.

Pete then spent about three years at Fort Sill, Okla., where he taught classes at the field artillery school. He had other assignments in California, Kansas, Mississippi and Washington, D.C. (at the Pentagon).

After the United States entered World War II, Pete was sent to Europe, where he was staff officer for the high command at the Ninth Army headquarters, initially in England (during the bombing of Britain), and later in France, Belgium and Holland.

Pete was a liaison officer involved in transmitting high-security messages among the high command in Europe, which included generals Eisenhower and Marshall. He attained the rank of major and later was a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserves.

In 1945, after his release from the Army, Pete returned to Corvallis and accepted the position of assistant manager of the OSC bookstore, which he held for 25 years. He had worked briefly for Montgomery Ward in Oakland, Calif., living in Berkeley, Calif., at the time, but Corvallis beckoned to him.

Pete eventually became manager of the OSU Bookstore and served in that capacity from 1970 to 1981. He then retired with 53 years of service to the bookstore, having had a huge impact on its development. He was a well-known figure on the OSU campus to students and faculty alike. During this time, he served a term as president of the Western College Bookstore Association.

Pete and Evon had two children. Peter was born in 1942 and became a "war baby" when Pete was overseas. Heather was born in 1949, after the family was firmly established in Corvallis.

Pete and Evon were very active in the Corvallis community for decades. They loved to dance and were longtime members of the Monads Dance Club and the Junior Town Club. Pete was also in the Triad Club, and served for many years as treasurer of the Corvallis Chamber of Commerce.

He was also active in OSU alumni groups such as Thirty Staters. He was instrumental in organizing a Jackson Avenue neighborhood picnic that endures to this day.

Pete lived his entire life with a positive attitude and always loved meeting new people and getting to know them. In his retirement, he served as a docent on the Oregon Coast for the U.S. Forest Service and as a conversant for foreign students at OSU. He made many friends from other countries and traveled around the United States and to Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Denmark and Indonesia.

Because of Pete's long-time enthusiastic support of OSU football, basketball and baseball games, and his having one of the best records ever for attending them, he became known by many as "Mr. Oregon State," and was presented with a special award during an OSU basketball game in recent years. He was also an ardent longtime supporter of and advisor to the Sigma Nu Fraternity.

At about age 70, Pete was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. This disease caused him to develop a curvature of his back, among other problems, but this did not stop him from fully enjoying his life.

Pete was proud of his two children. For many years, Peter Hollenbeck Smith has been an attorney in Modesto, Calif., and Heather Sue Daniels has been a physician in Tacoma, Wash. Pete also loved his grandchildren, Justin Scott Smith of Wilson, Wyo., Derek Byron Smith of Albany, Calif., and Christa Willamette Daniels of Tacoma, along with Justin's wife, Suzanne Smith, and Derek's wife, Rachel Barron.

All of them survive him, along with Pete's daughter-in-law, Ann Lee Smith, and his son-in-law, the Rev. Terry Daniels. All will cherish the memory of Pete and the impact he made on their lives.

In 2007, Pete was fortunate to receive a visit from his first great-grandchild, Owen Zander Smith from Wilson, and was scheduled in October to receive a visit from his second great-grandchild, Oliver Taggart Smith.

Pete was preceded in death by his wife of 49 years, Yvonne Hollenbeck Smith, as well as by his siblings, Abram Walter Smith Jr., Robert Smith, Mary Frances Smith, George I. Smith and Milton Smith.

Pete will be remembered by his friends and family at a celebration of his life at 3 p.m. on Oct. 21, 2009, in the chapel and meeting room of the First United Congregational Church of Christ, 4515 S.W. West Hills Road, Corvallis, with a reception to follow in the Fireside Room of the church. Any memorial donations can be directed to the OSU Foundation.