Augusta Frances Smith
January 19, 1927 - May 06, 2021
Frances was born in Montague County on a farm in Ringgold, Texas to Howell (Bud) and Jessie Hogland Pirtle. She was the fifth of a large, loving family of 10 children. They were a cotton farming family; share-cropping at times. Like most, from that area, they were poor. Each person had a job to do and the family unit depended on it. They did hard, manual labor, yet there was much love and laughter. One never tires hearing of the shenanigans they pulled on one another. They had a deep love and respect for God, the Bible, their parents and each other. None of these waned with the years, only deepened and intensified. Frances accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as her personal Savior as a young girl during a camp meeting revival. She met and married her husband, Roy Smith, in Nocona Tx after the end of World War II.
She was preceded in death by her parents Bud and Jessie Pirtle, her brothers W.A., James and Eugene Pirtle, as well as her sisters Aline Szpyrka, Mary Scott and Faye Leeper. Her husband, Roy Smith, also preceded her in death. Frances is survived by her sisters Alice Baker, Willene Grooms and Betty Monette; her son Clyde Smith and grand- daughters Stephanie Smith and Lindsey and husband Matthew Reyna; great-granddaughters, Mariah and Baylor Reyna; great- grandsons Kyler Smith and Konnor Huddleson; her daughter Kristi Moore and husband Duke; grand- daughters Kaylen Moore and Jessica Moore as well as many nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews. Frances was the provider of humor for the family. She is known for her clever quips and antics. That did not change with age. Many of the staff from The Grand at Bethany where she spent her last years remarked of how she would come up to the nurse's desk and greet them with "Boo!" Each time I visited she always asked about everybody. She would ask about my family and was there anything she could do to help? Frances survived Covid-19 and pneumonia in November 2020, but never fully regained her strength. She passed peacefully in her sleep the evening of May 6, 2021 at the age of 94. Her love, humor and giving spirit will greatly be missed. Frances' body will be laid to rest at the Ft. Sill National Cemetery in Elgin, Oklahoma.
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