Virgil O. Smith, 82, of Fitzgerald, Georgia, died Friday, December 20, 2024, at his residence.
Funeral services will be held 11 AM, Monday, December 23, 2024, at New Bethel Holiness Baptist Church, in Ben Hill County, Georgia, with the Rev. Logan Walker, the Rev. Larry Bowen, and the Rev. Jeremy Cox officiating. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends from 6-8 Sunday evening at the funeral home in Fitzgerald. The body will lie in state one hour prior to the services at the church on Monday.
Mr. Smith was born February 17, 1942, in Ben Hill County, Georgia, to the late Marcus Luke & Mable Grantham Smith. He was a 1960 graduate of Fitzgerald High School and attended Georgia Military Institute in Forsyth. He retired as a Conductor having worked for Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Coast Line, and CSX Railroads. Mr. Smith served his country honorably in the Army National Guard and was also a farmer. He was a member of Reedy Branch Baptist Church.
He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Dee Elizabeth Key Smith of Fitzgerald; a daughter, Melanie Bridgette Smith of Atlanta; a brother, Rev. Herschell E. & Margaret Smith; a sister, Charlene Elaine & Steve Foster; as well as many nieces and nephews. He will be greatly missed by his feline friend, Leo. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by four brothers: Joseph Walter Smith, Milton Marcus Smith, Charles Arvin Smith, and Hubert L. Smith, Sr.; and two sisters: Jessie Mae Terzino and Dorothy Nell Tresslar.
Paulk Funeral Home, Fitzgerald, is in charge of arrangements.