Doris Muriel Smith

Doris Muriel Smith of McAllen, TX, died peacefully on August 14,2024, after 103 vibrant years of life. She passed away in Austin, TX, surrounded by family. She was born on December 6, 1920, to Gladys and Horace Hilton in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania. Soon afterward the family migrated to the Rio Grande Valley where Doris grew up and built a beautiful life. She was a bold woman, who studied at Texas Women’s University and became a middle school teacher. She met the love of her life, Clyde Stapp Smith, and they were married on August 31, 1942, at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio where Clyde was stationed. Shortly afterwards Clyde was sent to Germany as a member of the Army’s Intelligence Division and the two wrote letters to each other from across the world. She still has those letters tenderly bound together to this day. They raised three children who were deeply cherished: Glen Smith, David Smith, and Kathy (Smith) Kreidler. In retirement, she and Clyde built a cabin in the Texas Hill Country on the Dry Frio River that multiple generations of her family congregated to, building roots, relationships, and memories that carry on in the fabric of the layers of her family today. She was a memory keeper. She kept the stories and the memories of her family and passed them from generation to generation with tenderness and hopeful expectation. She treasured music and she hoped for peace for her children, grandchildren and her great grandchildren. She loved Jesus and her Church. She was a survivor of so many things in her 103 years and that made her tenacious and courageous. As she met and passed a century of life, these qualities allowed her to become even more curious and introspective. She is survived by her children Glen Smith and his wife Marie, David Smith and his wife Debbie, Kathy Kreidler and husband Colly Kreidler, and grandchildren Nathan Smith, Shawn Smith and his wife Meghan Crabtree, Haley Patterson and her husband Brian Patterson, Rachel Boswell and her husband Patrick Boswell, and Michael Bellipanni and his wife Catie Vauban. She leaves behind 4 great grandchildren: EmmaJean and Ondine Boswell and (named after his sweet great grandfather) Clyde and Lennon Patterson. She is massively celebrated, forever cherished and deeply missed. Thank you for everything Grandma. The family will receive friends beginning at 9:00am on Wednesday, August 21, 2024 with a 9:45 funeral service at Kreidler Funeral Home in McAllen. Graveside Services will immediately follow at 11:00am at Valley Memorial Gardens in McAllen.

Tributes

Doris Muriel Smith

August 14, 2024