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Katherine E. Smith, 74

Katherine "Katie" Editha Smith was born on February 9, 1950, near a U.S. Army Base in Munich, Germany, the daughter of Edward C. and Katherine C. (Nilluis) Bryant. Katie passed away on May 8, 2024, at the Banner McKee Medical Center in Loveland, Colorado, at the age of 74 years, 2 months, and 29 days.
Katherine grew up near Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, and attended Eisenhower High School in Lawton, Oklahoma, where she graduated in 1968. Following high school, she attended Cameron College in Lawton, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics and a minor in Art. She was united in marriage to Thomas Alan Smith on January 29, 1972, at the Ft. Sill Post Chapel, following Tom's deployment to Vietnam.
Katie began her professional career as a buyer for Goodyear Tire Company in Oklahoma. She was in charge of buying supplies, setting up the factories production robots, and helping to fill customer orders. Tom and Katie relocated to Colorado when Tom was hired to work for Tri-States Generation and Transmission. Katie worked for the Adams County School District as the senior buyer, tasked with purchasing all of the necessary supplies and equipment for a school district of over 25,000 students to operate. She purchased school buses, gymnasium flooring, HVAC systems, student desks, pencils, and everything in between. She retired in 2004 from the Adams Co. School District, and she began to focus on her love for arts and crafts.
Katie was a master knitter, an accomplished embroider, and a well-known reverse oil painter. Katie and Tom attended many craft shows in Colorado and the region, where she had a dedicated following of customers. Katie utilized her computer skills to help her embroider nearly any design, and when she recently replaced her embroidery machine, it has completed over 12 million stitches.
She is preceded in death by her parents, Edward and Katherine Bryant, and her father-in-law and mother-in-law, Jack and Ethlyn Smith.
She is survived by her husband of 52 years, Thomas Smith of their home in Berthoud, Colorado; brother-in-law, Marlin Smith (Judy) of Chester; brother-in-law, Kent Smith (Jean) of Belleville; nieces, nephews and many friends.
Graveside funeral services will be Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 2:00 pm at Lake Cemetery, rural Republic, with Samantha Stensaas as celebrant. The casket will remain closed.
Tibbetts-Fischer Funeral Home is assisting the Smith family with arrangements.
www.tibbettsfischerfuneralhome.com

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Beloit, KS 67420, USA