Services for Doris Jean Jenkins Smith will be at 11:00a.m. on Friday, June 12, 2020 at Greater St. Lawrence Baptist Church. Rev. Emmanuel Smith, Sr. will be officiating. Interment will be in Garden of Memories Cemetery.
Sis. Doris Jean Jenkins Smith slept away peacefully into the gates of eternal peace and rest on Friday, June 5, 2020 at 7:45 a.m. Doris was born August 25, 1939, in Bessemer, Alabama, to the late Clifford Brown and Luverta Jenkins Dillard.
She was baptized at the age of nine years old, by the late Rev. Williams of Wheeling Chapel Baptist Church in Lipscomb, Alabama.
Doris attended Wenonah High School in Birmingham, Alabama. She later graduated from Delta Business College in Alexandria, Louisiana. She moved to Alexandria in 1959, where she met Rev. L. K. Smith. They were married on December 10, 1960 and were married for thirty-five years. To this union four children were born. Doris operated Smith’s Bookstore, later changed to Litty & Doris Bookstore, owned by her father-in-law, the late Rev. Dr. D. D. Smith, for many years until its closing. She did secretarial work for the Greater St. Lawrence Baptist Church, and was employed with Dee Marshall’s Beauty Salon and Annie Mae Nursing Home (now Matthews Memorial Health Center). She was an incredibly good beautician and passed the trademark on to her daughter.
Doris was an extremely sweet and humble person. She faithfully served with and supported her husband eighteen years during his pastoral ministry. She was gentle, quiet, always had a smile, and tried to help everyone that she could. She never met a stranger. She always saw the best in everyone. Most of all, she loved (which is an understatement) her children, grandchildren and children who were not her own. There was nothing she would not do for any of her children.
She served as a Deaconess at the Greater St. Lawrence Baptist Church until her health no longer allowed her to attend.
Doris was preceded in death by her husband Rev. L. K. Smith; parents, Clifford Brown and Luverta Dillard, maternal grandmother, Maggie Jenkins; paternal grandparents, Joe Brown and Corrine Brown; step-father, Alexander Dillard, Sr., two (2) brothers, Alexander Dillard, Jr. and Ricky Ray Dillard; four aunts, Rosetta Harris, Fannye Redmond, Maggie Ford and Minnie Jones; five (5) uncles, Maude Jenkins, Grover C. Jenkins, Samuel Jenkins, Arizona Jenkins, and Claude Jenkins, and cousins, Dana Jones, Otis Favors, Jacqueline Jones and Simon Jones.
She leaves to cherish her memories: five (5) daughters, Angela Newton of Birmingham, Alabama, Keena Dixon and husband Paul Dixon, Vanetta Lott and husband Rev. Roy L. Lott, Sr., Wanda Wright and husband Robert Wright, and Sherri Smith (Rico); one (1) son, Leroy K. Smith, Jr. (Serena); seventeen (17) grandchildren, Shariah Jenkins Aaron (husband Kevin Aaron) Brandi Newton Givan (husband Dedric Givan), Roy Lott, Jr., Vincent Lott, Vetria Lott Veal,(husband Johnta Veal), Eric Smith, Kedric Smith, Latasha Wright, Robert Wright, Jr., Edmond Wilkes, Chelsea Smith, Latrice Smith, Charity Chapman, Steven Sessums, Tyler Sessums, Jherick Silas, Chesney Silas; fourteen (14) great grandchildren, Rayne and Reese Aaron, Destiney and MaKayla Givan, Armani and Rashaad Lott, Raylan Lott, Aniyah Washington, Brayden Offord, Londyn and Johnta Veal, Jr., Divya and Luxli Smith; Cali Wright; Hannah Silas and Kensley Bailey; three (3) sisters, Brenda Dillard, Belinda Williams and Gloria Griffin, of Birmingham, Alabama; one other sister not by birth, Vickie Carter; brother-in-law, Rev. Emmanuel Smith, Sr., one cousin, Gregory Paul Harris of Seattle, Washington, a host of God-children, nieces, nephews other relatives and friends.