James “Jet” Smith, Jr. passed away peacefully on October 29, 2021 after a long illness. A New Bedford resident for over 50 years, Jet is survived by his wife, Jean Groebe Smith; children Imani (Gwen) Ali, of Tustin, CA; New Bedford City Councilor, Scott Lima, and Philip Lima of Roxbury, MA; his two grandchildren, Necolia Simmons and Aaron Lima; and many admirers in greater New Bedford, Roxbury, and across the country.
Jet, the son of James and Pecolia Smith, was born in Tulsa, OK, and raised by Pecolia and her strict, loving sisters in Los Angeles where his athletic prowess was recognized at Jefferson High School. Success in football and track soon followed as an all-American at California’s Compton Junior College---where he picked up the nickname, Jetstream (“Jet” for short)--and in the U.S. Air Force where he served in Korea.
By 1958 Jet had made it to professional football, playing with the Calgary Stampeders, and in 1960, after preseason play with the Los Angeles Chargers, he signed with the Oakland Raiders as a halfback for their inaugural season. A highlight of that season with the Raiders was his 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. This first-ever feat in Raiders’ history resulted in Jet’s being named pro football’s “Player of the Week.”
In 1961 he played with the Chicago Bears, and then closed out his football career in the mid-1960s playing in the Atlantic Coast Football League for the Providence Steamrollers and the New Bedford Sweepers along side his former Raiders colleague and close friend Riley Morris.
In 1965 the opportunity to make a difference for at-risk young people in the Job Corps at New Bedford’s old Fort Rodman brought Jet, Morris, and a number of other community-oriented professional Black men to New Bedford. Jet continued his work in community service as director of Boston Children’s Services, as a police-community relations officer in New Bedford, and as a court officer in Bristol County courts where he offered informal counsel to many troubled individuals.
Jet was a lifetime jazz enthusiast who, in his later years, was an avid golfer and longtime member of the William Devine Golf Club at Roxbury’s Franklin Park. It was a joy to him that influential jazz instructors at Berklee College of Music were among his Franklin Park golf partners, including the late, great Andy McGhee who frequently played with stars such as Woody Herman and Lionel Hampton.
Jet leaves behind family, friends, and admirers whom he touched deeply.
His Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, November 27th from 1-4 PM at the Wamsutta Club, 427 County St. New Bedford.