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Roger Allen Smith Obituary

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Roger Allen Smith

Hood River, OR

February 2, 1935 - May 28, 2020

Roger Allen Smith Obituary

Roger Allen Smith, residing at 3563 Neal Creek Rd., Hood River, OR was called home to be with his Lord & Savior on May 28, 2020 at 9:15 pm at his residence, his daughter & son in law at his side. Roger passed of natural causes. Roger was a Valentine’s Day baby, born on February 14, 1935 at Queen of Angels Hospital in Los Angeles, CA. He was the 3rd of 4 sons born to Gerald Wilber Smith & Gladys Ellen (Palmer) Smith. His eldest brother Gerald died at the age of 2 years. In the years following the death of the first-born son, three more sons were born to the couple: Arnold E. Smith in 1933 (now deceased), Roger A. Smith in 1935, and finally younger brother Thomas W. Smith in 1936 (currently living in Gates, OR). The Smith family lived on 106th St. in L.A. and in La Puente where their father worked for So. Calif Edison Power Co. As teen boys the family moved to Oroville, CA where Roger attended Oroville High School. He loved track & field events, medaling often in his most proficient sport of pole-vaulting. Roger was also very active in FFA, winning first place in a farm marketing examination and imagining a career with livestock. While in high school Roger went to his first youth group at a local Bible church, where he heard the gospel of Jesus Christ presented and he put his faith & trust in Christ as his personal Lord & Savior. After high school he then chose to attend Western Baptist Bible College in Oakland, CA where he felt the call upon his life to become a Minister of the Gospel. Roger also loved music and singing and was part of the college “Boys Ensemble” of 5 young men who traveled to various churches singing, sharing their testimonies of faith in Christ, and promoting the college. While in college, Roger fell in love with a beautiful daughter of one of his professors, a Miss Joyce M. Prewitt. The two were married August 24, 1956 on the steps of the newly purchased property location of the prospering college in El Cerrito, CA. They began their life together pastoring & shepherding churches, loving their God and their congregations. Roger & Joyce’s first daughter, Brenda G. (Smith) Thompson was born in Richmond, CA July 30, 1957, and their first son Ronald A. Smith was born in Escondido, CA January 18, 1960. A 3rd child, a son Bryan L. Smith was born in Turlock, CA April 30, 1965. In all these areas Roger served as youth and associate pastors in local churches. His 4th child, a daughter Beth L. (Smith) Bonnifield was born in Fortuna, CA August 9, 1969 where Roger was then the Senior Pastor of Campton Heights Baptist Church followed by a Pastorate at the Mammoth Community Church in Mammoth Lakes, CA. Roger often supplemented his pastoral income by doing side jobs as he was an “all around fix-it man.” He tinkered on cars and motors, did electrical work and was always in the process of creating something new, from the first bicycle pulled child carrier wagons to prototypes of the first “jet ski”, both made from WOOD! Vacations were usually spent camping & fishing (which he LOVED) with his brothers & their families. One of his favorite hobbies was building from scratch various and sundry styles of remote-controlled airplanes. The family remembers well the smells of glues & paints along with the many “crashes” as he embarked upon flying them! Roger took his family on the adventure of a lifetime when they loaded up a horse trailer with all they owned and headed north on the then dirt Alcan Highway to Alaska! After several years there working with a B&B Tool Co., Roger returned to Joseph, OR to Pastor the Joseph Community Church there where his 2 brothers and families then lived. In his middle years he spent some time in Stayton, OR where he had a small postal route and did some janitorial work for the school system, but desiring that “people hear the Gospel” was where his heart lay and once again he returned to the pulpit of Mehama Community Church in Mehama, OR. Reaching retirement age, he became maintenance coordinator at Cannon Beach Conference in Cannon Beach, OR. There he enjoyed flying kites, entering sandcastle competitions, and attending Bible Conferences. During these later years, his wife suffered from failing health and he was her caregiver and constant support. He & Joyce spent some time in Tumwater, WA before settling in Hood River, OR to be near their eldest daughter. Here they were active in attending Faith Bible Church until Roger’s health began to decline. Roger loved his Lord, his family, his church congregations, which prompted a life of service to others. (Plus, he dazzled the hearts of many a child over the years by mastering the ability to talk “just like Donald Duck!”) Roger is survived by his wife Joyce M. (Prewitt) Smith of Hood River, OR and 4 children: Daughter: Brenda G. (Smith) Thompson & husband Steve Thompson of Hood River, OR Son: Ronald A. Smith & wife Teresa Smith of Yakima, WA Son: Bryan L. Smith & wife Amy Smith of Chevy Chase, MD Daughter: Beth L. (Smith) Bonnifield & husband Todd Bonnifield of Camano Island, WA 14 Grandchildren: Shauntel (Thompson) Swanson of WA Justin Thompson of CA Briana (Thompson) Smith of MS Jordan Thompson of Belfahy, France Jocelynn (Smith) Bohannon of WA Ethan Smith of WA Cameron Smith of WA McKenzie Smith of GA Kendall Smith of MD Jay Bonnifield of WA Trevan Bonnifield of WA Lynnaea (Bonnifield) Walsh of NV Haley Bonnifield of WA Peyton Bonnifield of WA 10 Great-Grandchildren: Major Thompson Tate Swanson Rory Bohannon Nolan Bonnifield Addison Bonnifield Ethan Bonnifield Olivia Bonnifield Mason Bonnifield Baker Bonnifield Ian Walsh

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