Joy T. Smith

Joy T. Smith Lakeland - Joy Thacker Smith, 88 years old, of Clare Bridge Memory Care at Brookdale Highlands, died the morning of July 2, 2018, at the facility. Joy was born November 26, 1929 in Birmingham, Alabama, to Margaret Edwards and Elbert Filmore Thacker. The family lived in Chicago, Illinois, for nine years. She and her mother moved back to Birmingham during World War II, and Joy was graduated from Phillips High School in 1948. She attended Wheeler Business College and became a stenographer. She met the love of her life, Bert Smith, when both worked at Stockham Valves & Fittings. The couple married on August 13, 1955, and divorced in 1962. Joy and her children lived near her parents in Ocala, Florida, from 1963 until 1971. The family moved to Lakeland, Florida, in 1972 and she became a legal secretary. She worked freelance until she became judicial assistant to the Honorable Clifton Kelly. Upon his retirement, she became one of the first floating judicial assistants at the Polk County Courthouse, and later worked as judicial assistant for the Honorable Oliver Green. She is survived by her two daughters, Stacy Smith and her fiancé, Kevin Parrish, of Winter Haven, Florida, and Sidney Brand and her husband, Gary, of Savannah, Georgia; granddaughters Casey Brand and Alexandra Brand, of Brooklyn, New York; cousins Pam Shaw Dietsch, Glenda Shaw Williams, Ginnie Shaw Kakos, and Tom Shaw and their respective spouses and families, all of Tennessee. Joy was preceded in death by her stepfather, George H. DeMent, in 1972, and her mother, Margaret Edwards DeMent, in 1981. The family would like to thank the staff at Clare Bridge/Brookdale Highlands for the loving care provided for Ms. Joy during the time she lived there. We are also grateful for the respectful and gentle end-of-life care provided by Cornerstone Hospice Garnet Team that enabled her peaceful transition home to be with the Lord. A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. Saturday, July 14, 2018, at Heath Funeral Chapel. Details for the reception to be shared at the service. In lieu of flowers, tribute donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association (https://act.alz.org/site/Donation) or Cornerstone Hospice (https://web.cshospice.org/foundation/giving/).