Bernice Smith, 88, of Altoona and formerly of Lynnville, passed away Sunday, Nov. 5, 2017. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Nov. 18, at 11 a.m. at Sully Community Church. Burial was in Woodland Cemetery in Lynnville. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be designated to Sully Community Church or to Lynnville Historical Society.
Bernice was born Aug. 29, 1929, to Lemert and Della Renaud Brush. She was born on the family farm outside of Lynnville. Bernice was a star basketball player for Lynnville High School. She graduated as valedictorian of the Class of 1948.
In 1950, Bernice was united in marriage with Carl Vernon Jay. To this union two daughters were born, Beth Lorraine and Jody Lynn. Carl Vernon passed away in 1977. In 1978, Bernice married Robert “Smitty” Smith. He passed away in 2010.
Bernice lived in Lynnville all of her life and was active in her community. She was a member of the Lynnville Women’s Club for over 50 years, serving in various offices including president. In addition, she was a volunteer at the Old Wagaman Mill for the Lynnville Historical Society, a Girl Scout leader, and a member of the Lynnville Saddle Club. She had membership in the Lynnville Friends Church as well as the Sully Community Church, where she served as a Sunday school teacher, pianist, and organist. Bernice retired from a lengthy career with the Lynnville Post Office, where she served as Postmaster for several years. She also had worked at Maytag and Dr. Dick Sparks’ office, and was a bookkeeper for Lynnville-Sully Community School.
Bernice was a wonderful cook. She and Smitty had a large vegetable garden, and they canned meats and vegetables and sold produce at the farmer’s market. Bernice was known at the farmer’s market for the fruit and pecan pies she brought to sell each week. She enjoyed traveling and visited all 50 states, as well as Israel, Egypt, Japan, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, and Europe. She especially enjoyed flying down to Florida to visit Jody and Jim and her granddaughters. She and both husbands enjoyed boating and hosting guests at their second home at Lake Ponderosa.
Bernice was a loving mother and a faithful Christian woman. She is survived by two daughters, Beth Jordan (Ron Haug) of Pleasant Hill and Jody (Jim) Nielsen of Pensacola, FL; four grandchildren, Jessica (Travis) Toohey, Aaron (Kendra) Haug, Alyssa Nielsen, and Lexie Nielsen; two great-grandchildren, Tyler Johnson and T.J. Toohey; her sister, Lois (Don) Vander Schel; and brother-in-law, Floyd De Boef. She was preceded in death by her parents, husbands, her brother Rex Brush, and her sisters Delores Boggs, Harriet De Boef, Mildred Lisk, and Cheryl Brush.
