June Smith, 88, of Lucerne, Missouri, passed away at the Putnam County Care Center in Unionville, Missouri, on Sunday December 18, 2022. She had been in declining health.
Wanda June Smith was born in Lucerne, Missouri, on February 13, 1934, the daughter of Delbert and Mildred Faye (Evans) Pauley. She grew up in the Lucerne area and spent most of her life there. She married Keith Smith on December 22, 1950. June graduated from Newtown-Harris High School in 1951. She and Keith spent most of their married life on a farm south of Lucerne where they raised livestock and, for a time, milked cows. June loved being a farmer’s wife. She raised a big garden and helped in every way on the farm. She and Keith had four children: Sharon, Karon, Stan, and Gary. June was involved in 4-H and PTA and was very active at the Lucerne Methodist Church, playing the piano, singing, and teaching children’s classes. They later attended the Lucerne Christian Church when the Methodist Church closed.
June worked with Anna Blanchard at the Lucerne Café in later years. She also worked in the cafeteria at Newtown-Harris school and as an aide at Putnam County R-1 Schools. June was a wonderful cook, and her Butterscotch pies and cinnamon rolls were famous in Lucerne. She also made wedding cakes. She had a giving spirit and a servant’s heart, always thinking of others. June was especially proud of her family who, after the Lord, was the center of her life.
June is survived by a daughter, Sharon (Steve) Hulsopple of Berryton, Kansas, and a son, Gary (Kay) Smith of Lenox, Iowa, as well as son-in-law Jack (Judy) Parsons of Newtown, Missouri, and daughter-in-law Gloria Smith of Unionville, Missouri. She is also survived by 14 grandchildren, 31 great grandchildren, and 3 great-great grandchildren. A sister-in-law, Judy Pauley, of Unionville, Missouri, also survives.
June was preceded in death by her husband, Keith, on October 25, 2018; her parents; a son, Stan; a daughter, Karon; a granddaughter, Kassie Smith; a sister, Claudine Collins; a brother, Bill Pauley; and a nephew, Michael Collins.
Funeral services for June Smith will be at the Lucerne Chrisitan Church at 2:00 pm on Tuesday, December 27, 2022, with visitation one hour prior to the service. Interment will be at the Lucerne Cemetery in Lucerne, Missouri.
Memorials may be made payable to the Lucerne Cemetery or the American Cancer Society and entrusted with Playle and Collins Family Funeral Home, 709 S. 27th St., Unionville, MO 63565.
