Esther G. Smith âbeloved by allâ
LITTLE GENESEE, NY---Esther G. Smith, 72, of Little Genesee, NY, formerly of Portville, NY and Shinglehouse, PA, passed away in her home with her loving family by her side on Friday, December 4, 2015, after a courageous battle with cancer.
Born on September 13, 1943 in San Antonio, Texas, she was a daughter of Pedro V. and Guadalupe Garcia. On June 11, 1966 in Our Lady of Good Council Catholic Church in San Antonio, she married Lawrence E. âLarryâ Smith, Sr., who survives.
Esther was a graduate of Chicago Vocational School in Chicago, Illinois and San Antonio Commercial College. She was employed at ALCAS Cutlery, now CUTCO Cutlery Corporation, in Olean starting in 1973, having held several positions until retiring as an inspector after over 34 years of service.
Esther was a member of St. Theresa Catholic Church in Shinglehouse and was also a member of the former Sharon Grange in Shinglehouse. Esther loved life. She enjoyed bowling. Her greatest love was her family.
Surviving besides her husband are a son, Lawrence E. âLarryâ Smith, Jr. of Little Genesee; a daughter, Irene J. Faux of Corpus Christi, Texas; two foster children, Minerva Garcia (Kevin) Sands of Portville and Antonio (Emily) Garcia of Chicago; six grandchildren, Allison Rogers, Jordan Smith, Natalie Smith, William Rogers, Anthony Rogers, and Lucas Smith; seven foster-grandchildren, Kevin (Angela) Sands, Jr., Stephanie (Tim) Wardner, Susan Sands, Justin (Olivia) Sands, Stacy Garcia Servantes, Sara Garcia Marez, and Matthew (Alexis) Garcia; a great-granddaughter, Hadese Rogers; eight foster-great-grandchildren; two sisters, Juanita Garcia of Indiana and Irene Garcia of Chicago; and two brothers, Pedro (Annie) Garcia and Jose (Terry) Garcia, both of Chicago; and many nieces and nephews.
In addition to her parents, Esther was predeceased by six brothers, Francisco, Tomas, Roberto, Jesse, Gilberto, and Antonio; and a foster son, Tom Garcia.
Friends may call from 10 a.m. to 12 noon on Wednesday, December 9, 2015 at the Virgil L. Howard Funeral Home, 118 South Union Street, Shinglehouse, PA. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday at St. Theresa Catholic Church, Shinglehouse, with the Rev. Thomas Brown, pastor, as celebrant. Burial will be in Maple Grove Cemetery, Shinglehouse.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Theresa Catholic Church, PO Box 277, Shinglehouse, PA, 16748 or to the Shinglehouse Youth Wrestling Program, c/o Oswayo Valley Jr./Sr. High School, 318 South Oswayo Street, Shinglehouse, PA 16748.