Josephine "Josie" Marie (Honkala) Smith

Josephine Marie "Josie" Smith (nee Honkala), age 95 years, of Newark, DE, passed away peacefully in hospice on April 4, 2025 due to complications from a broken hip and broken elbow caused by a fall.

Josie was born and raised in Painesville, OH, the daughter of Matt and Anna Honkala. She is preceded in death by her twin brother John Honkala and her older siblings Margaret Smith, Lila Simkus, Florence Werronen and Carl Honkala. She is survived by her five children: Kim Smith (Devie) of Newark, DE; Lani Heckert of Bethalto, IL; Todd Smith of Athens, AL; Kelly Smith of Wickliffe, OH; and Scott Smith (Christine) of Carthage, NC. She has nine grandchildren: Karleen Heckert; Benjamin (Gwen) Heckert; Otis Smith; Lara Smith; Katarina (Ben) Wibbens; Martin Smith; Aleksander Smith; Lukas Smith and Sophia Smith. She also has one great-grandchild: Clark Heckert (with a little brother on the way).

Josie graduated from Harvey High School in Painesville, OH in 1948. She was head cashier at Kresge’s Dept. Store, Painesville and then a keypunch operator at Diamond Alkali, Fairport Harbor before marrying Clark Smith in 1956. Due to Clark’s job, the couple raised their family in many locations: Kailua, HI; Findley Lake, NY; Meadville, PA; McKean, PA; and Newark Valley, NY. Josie was a hard-working homemaker, great cook and world-class baker (over 100 dozen cookies each Christmas season). Later she worked in the Newark Valley Middle School cafeteria and Valley Pharmacy. Upon her divorce in 1986, Josie moved back to Wickliffe, OH and worked for many years in the Orange High School cafeteria in Pepper Pike, OH. In retirement, Josie lived in Carrollton, GA and Athens, AL with Todd, then back in Wickliffe, OH with Kelly, then in assisted living in Newark, DE near Kim.

Josie had been a member of and active in many Lutheran parishes throughout her lifetime, as a Sunday School teacher and choir member. She often provided hands-on support to church groups, her kids' school activities, and local civic organizations like Welcome Wagon, Meadville and the Newark Valley Historical Society. She was a lifelong excellent bowler, even into her 80s, and an avid walker, still doing up to a mile per day with her walker at age 94.

Josie will be cremated and interred in Evergreen Cemetery, Painesville, OH at 10:00am on Friday, May 2, 2025. A memorial service at Advent Lutheran Church, Mentor, OH will be conducted at 11:00am the same day, followed immediately by a reception in the church fellowship hall. Donations may be made in her name to the Finnish Heritage Museum in Fairport Harbor, OH or to the Wickliffe Senior Center in Wickliffe, OH.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Josephine "Josie" Marie (Honkala) Smith, please visit our floral store.