Kent Kay Smith

Kent Kay Smith, age 88, of Willoughby, Ohio, died February 17, 2023 at University Hospital Lake West Medical Center in Willoughby. He was born July 4, 1934. Kent was an Army veteran, a faithful Presbyterian, an award-winning educator, a loving husband & patient parent, a night school principal, a sportsbook statistician, and a Euclid Recreation Department summer baseball league organizer. He loved books, baseball, fireworks, travel, cats, newborns, manual transmission autos, and Thanksgiving. He was pleasant and kind and wise and he made people have better days. Those who encountered him were glad they did and those who knew him were lucky to do so. Born in Fort Wayne Indiana, Kent was a Euclid native and was both a beneficiary and a benefactor of the Euclid City Public Schools. His parents, Delmar and Gertrude, taught in the Euclid School System and he graduated from the (then) new Euclid High School in 1952. Following a degree from Wittenberg University in 1956, Kent returned to Euclid as an educator himself, teaching first at Shore Junior High and finishing his public education career at Central Middle School. Following his public-school retirement in 1986, he continued to teach at the Phillips Osborne School until 2001. He met his wife of 60 years, Judith (nee Kessler), in the hallways of Shore Junior High where she was a colleague educator - an art teacher. All three of his sons, Kent, Mark, and Jeff, were also Euclid High School graduates. In 1986, Kent was named the Euclid Teachers Association Outstanding Educator. In 1987, he became the first educator selected to the Euclid Schools Distinguished Achievement Hall of Fame; but he was not just a Euclid School system educator, he also was a basketball statistician for 33 years. He worked as the official scorekeeper for boys and girls teams at Shore Junior High, Central Middle School and Euclid High School. Additionally, for 27 years, he was the official score keeper for the Euclid Sectional and District playoff basketball tournaments. It was that dedication that got Kent inducted into the Euclid High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2008. At that time, he was just the tenth person to be inducted into both Euclid School Hall of Fames. Kent was a faithful Presbyterian all his life. He served at Historic First Church in East Cleveland and First Presbyterian Church in Willoughby as Deacon, Ruling Elder, and Clerk of Session for many devoted years. Kent spent his final 14.5 years as a resident of Breckenridge Village in Willoughby where he logged over a thousand hours of volunteer work. He served as chair of his housing division and would often be found driving the tram around campus in his red and white Cat-in-the-Hat hat. He leaves behind his beloved family and legions of lives touched. Survivors include his wife, Judith Smith; his sons, Kent, Mark, and Jeff; daughter in law, Alicia; and his grandchildren Rachel, Rebecca, Kevin, and Ellen, who will miss him dearly. In addition to his parents, he is also preceded in death by his sister, Jeanine Reed. A memorial service will be held Friday, March 3, 2023, at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Willoughby, 4785 Shankland Road, Willoughby, Ohio 44094. A time of food and fellowship at the church will be held following the service. For those unable to attend, you will be able to watch the service online via the church’s website: https://www.fpcwilloughby.org/worship.html In lieu of flowers, the family asks your consideration of a donation to the Life Care Fund at Ohio Living Breckenridge Village, c/o the Ohio Living Foundation, 9200 Worthington Road, Suite 300, Westerville OH 43082. Arrangements entrusted to the Brunner Sanden Deitrick Funeral Home & Cremation Center, 8466 Mentor Ave., Mentor, OH 44060. Please offer condolences at www.brunners.com.

Kent Kay Smith

July 4, 1934 - February 17, 2023