Percy Robinson Smith Jr.

1930 - 2023

Percy Robinson Smith, Jr.
April 20, 1930 - February 21, 2023
Wilmington, North Carolina - Percy Robinson Smith, Jr., died peacefully at home in Wilmington on Tuesday, February 21, 2023.
Percy was born on Easter Sunday, April 20, 1930, in Wilmington, NC to Bess Lee Newton Smith and Percy Robinson Smith of Wilmington.
After being a bachelor for 50 years, he married Lillian Duer James of Hamlet, NC on August 2, 1980, the hottest day on record. He is survived by his wife and their two daughters, Lillian Smith Teer and husband Michael Page Teer, Jr., of Wilmington, and Eliza Smith Dunn and husband Joshua David Dunn of Beaufort, SC. He is also survived by four granddaughters Emerson (Emmy) Elizabeth Teer, Lillian (Lilly) James Teer, Eliza McLauchlin Dunn, and Ann Marie Dunn as well as his brother William (Billy) Newton Smith and wife Jean Whiting Smith and their five children William (Bill) Newton Smith, Jr., Lisa Ten Eyck and husband Pete, Allene Adams and husband Jim, Jean Whiting Smith, and Elizabeth (Lizzy) Alderman Smith.
Percy attended The Hill School in Pottstown, PA for high school and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. After the death of his father in 1952, Percy returned to Wilmington to help his mother run the family car dealership Cape Fear Ford. Percy and his brother Billy attributed the success of Cape Fear Ford to the devoted employees.
Percy loved the outdoors whether sailing, fishing or hunting and was known for his great sense of humor, kind heart, and generous spirit. He was a devoted husband and father who found joy in teaching his daughters a love of sailing and enjoyed spending his summers at the South end of Wrightsville Beach.
He set the bar on so many things that are the foundation of a life well lived. He never had a bad day and always had a twinkle in his good eye.
Percy was a life-long member of the YMCA and loved running in the annual triathlon with his dear friends John Reid Murchison and Laurence Gray Sprunt.
Percy was a Paul Harris fellow of Rotary International and life-long member of First Presbyterian Church.
The family would like to thank his devoted caregivers Arleta Maynard and Emily Hudson.
Active pallbearers will be Dr. Edward Guerrant Lilly III, Walter Scott Montgomery IV, John Reid Murchison III, Michael Corbett Brown III, Alexander Murchison Sprunt, and David Harriss Sprunt.
Honorary pallbearers will be George Thomas Clark, Jr., Edward Guerrant Lilly, Jr., Walter Scott Montgomery, Jr., John Reid Murchison II, Ray A. Richardson, and Dr. James Boykin Sloan.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to First Presbyterian Church, 125 South Third Street, Wilmington, NC 28401.
There will be a visitation at the family home Thursday between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m.
A funeral service will be held at First Presbyterian Church on Friday, February 24, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. followed by a burial at Oakdale Cemetery.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.andrewsmortuary.com