Frank Smith (8 Dec 1931 - 24 Jan 2021)

Frank Smith December 8th, 1931 – January 24th, 2021.

Peacefully passed and joined our much-loved mum Betty Marion Smith.

Devoted husband for 53 years, he leaves behind sons Ian and Michael; grandchildren Sarah, Catherine, Jessica, Nicola, and Matthew and great grandchildren Kaeden and Rorie. Predeceased by parents Thomas and Caroline (Martin), brother Tommy, and sister Carol Day. As well as grandchild David and great grandchild Alexis.
He will be missed by many other family members as well as Phyllis Tillman, his close companion for the last 10 years.

Born in the East end of London within the sound of Bow Bells (making him a true Cockney), he left school at 15 to start working life as an apprentice carpenter and then did his national service in the RAF. It was during his time in the RAF that he helped support the 1953 London-New Zealand Air Race Speed Section. He was in the ground support crew in Iraq for the winning Canberra aircraft. It was also during this time that he met "his" Betty. Frank had befriended Betty's brother Ron, who had a photo of his sister in his locker. Frank admired the girl in the photo and after checking that it wasn't Ron's girlfriend, asked if he would be able to write to her. They became pen-pals and the rest is history.

He moved through a number of professions before retiring as a bailiff from the county court. He was often referred to as the “friendly bailiff” due to his empathy and willingness to compromise to get problems resolved.
Frank was never a wealthy man but was very astute when it came to his finances. He was the first in his family to own his own house. He was also a wise investor in the stock market building a presentable portfolio which helped him out in later life.

It was a serious cycling accident in his late teenage years, when he broke his back, that put a damper on his ambition to follow his childhood friend George into the navy. He would be affected by this accident throughout his life.

Frank had a number of hobbies over the years many of which he won trophies for like cycling, photography, and breeding/showing canaries. Some of which he shared with mum like lawn bowls and winemaking. Mum ending up being the better bowler of the pair, much to his delight. His last hobby took him full circle, back to working with wood with his wood lathe.

He led a full life which it is evident by the many wonderful friends he has made over the years. On one occasion, he even managed to get locked up overnight in an African jail. We will leave this story for the times we can gather and remember him with much love.

After Betty died, Frank went on to meet Phyllis who became his close companion during the last years of his life.

In his later years, his health deteriorated badly. He suffered with heart conditions and diabetes for a long time. Then in 2016 he had a stent installed, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2018 and he reluctantly had to stop driving (a relief for everyone else on the roads). He moved in with Ian after that as his deteriorating health meant he could no longer care for himself. In late 2019 he moved into a nursing home, where he made many friends with his songs, which is where he stayed until his death.

He was much loved and will be missed by everyone who got to know him.