Bobbie Smith

Bobbie J. Smith, age 83, of Safford, Arizona, quietly passed into the eternities on Friday morning, April 25, 2025, at the Quiburi Mission Nursing and Rehabilitation Home in Benson, following a lengthy illness.
Bobbie Smith was born in Eden, Texas, on the 5th of March in 1942, to parents Ernest Kit Lackey and Barbara Joella Adkins. She was one of seven children; the only surviving sibling is Dewey Lackey. She spent part of her childhood in Arkansas and moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico, around age 13, where she met her future husband: Thomas William Smith Sr. They were married on December 31, 1956, in Las Cruces, New Mexico, while still at the tender ages of 14 and 17. Thomas and Bobbie had 5 little ducklings: Tammy Holt (Wally), Will Smith, Robert Smith (Vickie), Leanna Williams (Rick), and Buster Smith (Karla). She is also survived by 29 grandchildren, 31 great-grandchildren, and 6 great-great-grandchildren.
Throughout her life as a wife and homemaker, Bobbie and her family moved several times. Bobbie and her husband Tom were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on August 27, 1980. After moving to Safford, Arizona, in June of 1981, Bobbie attended Eastern Arizona College; she received her Associate's Degree in Art in 1986. She later worked in the Thatcher Unified School District cafeteria, where she was fondly remembered as "the ladybug lady." She retired after about 10 years of dedicated service. Tom and Bobbie were later sealed in the Mesa, Arizona Temple on the 9th of December in 1998.
Her husband Tom passed away in October 2011. After his passing, she eventually moved to Oklahoma to spend time with her younger brother Dewey. She returned to Safford after a couple of years and spent her remaining days surrounded by her loved ones.
Bobbie was preceded in death by: her parents, Ernest and Joella Lackey; older brothers, Henry "Sonny" Lackey and Lilburn "Buster" Lackey; and older sisters, Lola "Sister" Standridge, Shirley Harrington, and Ernestine "Tine" Grooms; as well as her daughter-in-law, Raynelle Smith; and son-in-law, Doug Alldredge.
Bobbie's family appreciates the helping hands at the Quiburi Mission Nursing and Rehabilitation Home and the TMC Hospice staff for their hard work, dedication, and loving care to ease her passing. We also extend a special thanks to Vining Funeral Home: your great support has been a welcome comfort after her passing.
Funeral services for Bobbie Smith will be conducted Thursday morning, May 1, 2025, at 10:00 a.m., at Vining Funeral Home's "Chapel of the Valley" by Joseph Allred. Concluding services will follow at Graham Cemetery.
The family will receive friends Thursday morning, May 1, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. until service time at 10:00 a.m., at the Vining Funeral Home. To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of Bobbie, please visit our Tree Store.