Windsor Hunt Smith

Windsor Smith Obituary

SMITH - Windsor Hunt, of Eureka Springs, AR passed away June 6, 2008, after a courageous battle with cancer. He was born June 15, 1953, in Tulsa, OK to Russell Hunt and Gloria (Warren) Smith. He was predeceased by: his father; and infant sister, Diana Marie Smith. He is survived by: his wife of 25 years, Rhonda (Fullerton) Smith and 2 daughters, Lauren Nicole and Ashley Marie of the home; his mother, Gloria Smith; and sister, Cynthia Smith Steverson and husband, Roy all of Tulsa; father and mother-in-law, Raymond and Lois Fullerton; brother and sister-in-law, Roger and Lorraine Fullerton all of Austin, TX; nieces and nephew, Diana Steverson and Will and Emma Fullerton. Windsor graduated from Edison High School in Tulsa and South Oklahoma City Junior College. He married Rhonda Fullerton June 30, 1983, and bought 16 acres in Eureka Springs, on which he built his shop for Smith's Custom Cabinets. He was a master woodworker and cabinet maker but also operated Clean Sweep Chimney Service and U-Haul Rentals. At the time of his death, he was co-owner along with his wife, of Cedar Log Box Co. and Storage Solutions, a 118 unit mini-storage facility. A Celebration of Life memorial was held June 14th at the family home in Eureka Springs. Windsor Hunt Smith V IEW AND SIGN THE ONLINE GUEST BOOK: www.legacy.com/tulsaworld

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Published by Tulsa World on Jul. 6, 2008.

Memories and Condolences
for Windsor Smith

4 Entries

rod dent

July 7, 2008

Cynthia,
I am shocked and saddened by the loss of your brother Windsor. My sympathies to you and your family. From what I remember, Windsor was "one of a kind". The good kind.

Scott Borton

July 6, 2008

Windsor was my oldest friend. I considered him my best friend from shortly after the day I transferred to Lee Elementary in 2nd grade and he was the kid who kept turning around to stare at me and I gave him back the “bug eyes” until recently when we talked about the also untimely death of our friend Bill Moeller. I could call Windsor up and after 5 minutes of catch up we would be talking about the many adventures and misadventures we shared together in school, 1st Presbyterian Church and life as though we were back in the “old days”. I am struck how much he resembles his dad Russell in the picture here and many memories flood back and cause me to smile even through my sadness. He shared Russell’s gentle, loving and friendly nature (along with a true appreciation for Coney Islander). Not a day will pass in my life that I won’t think of him. As he shared many of our experiences with Rhonda, Lauren and Ashley I continue to share them with my grandkids and they always elicit a grin and hopefully they learn some things from our mistakes.

I can honestly say that if I had never known Windsor Smith I would be a much lesser person. I’m absolutely sure that anyone who knew him beyond an acquaintanceship would say the same. I look forward to the day that I see him and Russell together again and hear the invitation we always loved, “How about a malt boys?” and hear Windsor’s unique laugh again.

My love and prayers go out to Rhonda, Lauren, Ashley, Cynthia, Gloria and the rest of the family and all of Windsor's many friends.

Joe Kifer

July 6, 2008

Eulogy For My Best Friend.

The world is less of a place. My one true friend, with whom I eagerly anticipated yearly visits with, is no longer with us.

There’s something very special about knowing someone from the time when you were both kids. The minute you get around each other, you can immediately go back to the joy and innocence of childhood and laugh for hours about nothing. Windsor and I have laughed hard for well over 40 years. It actually turned out that our families had known each other in Missouri for a couple of generations, so our friendship was destined and fate would place us in the same neighborhood in the same town in Oklahoma.

I met Windsor when I first came to Lee Elementary in the 4th grade. Because of his large head, at Lee Windsor was know as the boy with the Post Toasts box head. He actually took this as a term of endearment and celebrity, and he reveled in it.

We had a club at Lee we named the Baby Buffaloes, and we met in the playhouse that still stands today in the backyard at 21st & Cincinnati. We were the ones that hung the odd-ball address number we found somewhere above the club house door. I don’t remember who the other members were, but I’m sure you had to be cool to be in there with us.

Windsor named the club "Baby" Buffaloes, and the response to why was always "Well, you know what big buffaloes do". I not sure that any of us ever knew what that meant, but it was enough to stop the conversation and keep the name the same. We collected dirt-clouds and assembled rubber-band guns in case any rival clubs from Lee should attack.

Through middle school, we lived through all the awkward moments of growing up together. From who’s going steady with who, to the ever-changing music of the times by the Beatles or Jimi Hendrix, we did our best to grow up and yet be the coolest we could be at the same time. High school started with us joining a social club and riding around on Windsor’s Honda 90 motorcycle with embroidered club jean jackets, and progressed to us having long hair and driving 1940-something panel trucks.

Windsor’s panel truck was an old Ford he had painted entirely primer red. The scariest thing about these panel trucks was, not only did they not have seat belts but they didn’t even have seats other than the driver’s. We rode around on spare chairs from our parents’ homes. Windsor added bull horns for a hood ornament and painted Smith’s Ambulance Service on the doors. The police were quick to point out, he could not do that.

High school ended with a camping trip to the Grand Canyon during spring break our senior year, and I’m sure to this day they still have our photos posted at the entry gates. Visiting Windsor in Norman was always filled with playing music, volleyball, ping-pong and cooking. From our days of working in restaurants, Windsor was a good cook. This is good thing for a man, but you can imagine the kitchen of a 3 male bachelor pad. It was bad.

As we married, starting having children and reluctantly became responsible adults, our new families would visit often. Summer visits were at the Smiths, and we usually managed to squeeze in one night at the Kifers during holiday visits to Tulsa. Since these holiday visits were short and we always had a lot to tell each other, we would party in to the night playing music or dancing around the living room.

The phone would ring, and it would be Gloria. "It’s 3 am and Windsor and Rhonda never made it home" she would say. My response was "It is, let me put Windsor on the phone".

Anyone who ever saw Windsor walk, knows where the artist of the 60’s Zap Comics came up with "Keep on truckin". Windsor truly trucked. It was easy for him to kick those long legs out in front as he walked, with a little bit of a cool back lean. One of my most favorite pictures I ever took, was of Windsor trucking across the Bestyet parking with a watermelon and a six-pack after a hard day’s work in the sun framing houses. It’s titled Bestyet Melon Trucking.

Windsor also had great hair. That thick curly hair and beard gave him a fabulous range of looks. Cut short with a clean shave, Windsor could do the young Bob Dylan look. Medium length hair with a trimmed beard, Windsor was the perfect beach-comber. Some of his looks had multiple looks. With long hair and full beard, Windsor could have the ultimate hippie look or, with a change of costume and hair tied back, the Ozark mountain man. Regardless the look, there always was that bright twinkle in his eyes.

I just bought a guitar on Ebay. It’s a cool but inexpensive electric 12 string, made by this quirky little company - something I’ve always wanted. But the thrill of winning the bid seemed trite, while we were waiting for Windsor’s test results; and the day the guitar arrived, we lost him.

I wondered if I would always associate these events with this guitar. But the more I thought about it, it really was a gift from Windsor. Windsor had sent me the client who purchased the house that gave me a commission which I used to purchase the guitar. Windsor had given me something I always wanted. And after all, it was right up Windsor’s alley - a quality product from a quirky manufacturer at a cheap price.

My friend Windsor was truly a one-of-a-kind person. This is a compliment I bestow on very few. It’s easy to go with the flow and be one of the masses, but it the rarest quality of all is to be unique naturally. He was Windsor and there are or never will be others like him. His uniqueness was his effortless achievement and our great loss. He has always been, and will forever continue to be, my best friend.

Charles Jennemann

July 6, 2008

Dear Smiths and Steversons:

I am very sorry for your loss. Windsor was a pleasure to be around. I have wonderful memories of his creative and joyous character.

I can see him hanging out with his Dad right now having lots of laughs. Windsor is now at peace. I pray for God's continued blessings for all of you. Windor was certainly a blessing to us and his spirit will always continue to be.

Love to all,

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