Anne Smith

Anne Reid Smith, 69, of Jacksonville, Florida passed away February 4th 2020 rescuing orphans from a burning building. Accounts on that may vary. She was born to her loving parents, Carlyne Hix Reid and James Moir Reid, Jr. on January 22, 1951 in Troy, North Carolina. She grew up in nearby Candor, North Carolina with her older sister Cheryl, their 13 cousins, 8 aunts and uncles and their grandparents. They were a rowdy bunch that loved to play jokes on each other and cause mischief.

Anne graduated from East Montgomery High School in 1969 where she was a member of the National Honor Society. While living in Charleston, South Carolina, she met her beloved husband, Jerry Wayne Smith. They moved to Jacksonville, Florida and were married on June 22, 1974. A woman of many talents, she worked alongside her husband for 30 years managing the two businesses they started in Jacksonville.

Anne and Jerry were very active members of the Morocco Shrine Temple for many years. They worked diligently at raising awareness, collecting funds and getting others involved to support the Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. Anne found herself as the guest speaker at many a ladies luncheon and, surprisingly, she loved it.

Anne was world-renowned for her amazing sense of humor, her quick wit, her vast intelligence, not holding back her opinions and a gift of telling it like it is. She would always tell you the truth, even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear. Her extensive vocabulary allowed her to do any and all crossword puzzles and also made her highly proficient at knowing more curse words than most people learn in a lifetime.

That being said, beneath her tough exterior she had a heart of absolute gold. She was a true and loyal friend. She was always there if you needed encouragement, advice, or comfort and she had a knack for making you feel special.

We will also remember her skill in the kitchen. She had a talent of cooking pork chops very thoroughly to attain an interesting texture that exercised your jaw muscles. Once she made a beautiful bundt cake in the shape of a rose, but the expired oil she used gave it a taste that reminded you of old gym shoes. From that point on, she used her oven for storage.

She always questioned her skills as a mother. Luckily, I was born as a serious old woman in a child’s body. She was zany and inappropriate often telling me she would tell me a dirty joke as long as I didn’t tell anyone I had heard it from her. She taught me to not take things so seriously, she taught me to laugh, she taught me to love with a love that accepts and cherishes unconditionally, she taught me to be thoughtful and kind but not to be a doormat to be trod upon, she taught me to see the good in life and to hold it in my heart, she taught me about art and theatre and to explore the seed of creativity in myself, and she also taught me all the songs to Bat Out of Hell and Bat Out of Hell II by Meatloaf. She was my best friend, my closest ally, provided infinite support and advice, and was always my port and my safety that I could always return to. Wherever she was, that was my home. She was the best mother I could have ever asked for and I will treasure every moment I had with her for the rest of my life and beyond.

She will be sorely missed and is survived by her husband Jerry Smith, their only daughter Jamie Carpentier, her son-in-law John Carpentier, her two granddaughters Madeleine Reid Carpentier and Gemma Graham Carpentier, and her loving sister Cheryl Gallimore.

She was preceded in death by her mother and father, Carlyne and James Reid, Jr. as well as her loving pets Pepper, Yogi, Boo Boo, Chuck and Pierre. All who loved her dearly will never forget her tenacity, wit, charm, grace (when required) and her undying love and caring for them.

A friends and family gathering will be held on Wednesday, February 12, 2020 from 6-8 pm at the Broadus Raines Funeral Home in Green Cove Springs, Florida. We will also have a memorial service to celebrate her life and memory on February 29, 2020 at 11 am on the second floor of the Activity Building at the Morroco Shrine Temple on St. Johns Bluff Boulevard.

In lieu of flowers, please donate generously to the Shriner’s Hospital for Children in Tampa, Florida at www.donate.lovetotherescue.org.