Obituaries

John Henry Smith

On Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020, John Henry Smith of Greensboro, Ga., passed away at the age of 86 at Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital in Athens, Ga.

John was born Oct. 2, 1933, in Port Washington, N.Y. He was the son of Jack W. Smith and Johanna B. Simon. He graduated from Port Washington High School and received his engineering degrees from the State University of New York at Delhi and Hofstra University of Long Island, N.Y. On April 20, 1957, he married Ann Oddy Smith. They raised three children: Leslie, Thomas and Heather.

For 42 years John worked for Turner Construction Company, retiring in 1998 as a vice president. While working for Turner, John oversaw such projects as the building of Madison Square Garden and Rockefeller Center, along with the rebuilding and renovating of Penn Station over the existing operating train lines. Other projects included hospitals in New York City and Gallipolis, Ohio; the Hewlett Packard factory in Waltham, Mass.; and Nationwide Insurance Building, The Ohio Theater and American Electric Power in Columbus, Ohio. 

In 2013 John and Ann moved to Greensboro and made their home in Del Webb. John had a passion for golfing. He spent as much time as possible on the links and always hit the ball straight down the fairway. He also enjoyed fishing, yard work and spending time with his grandsons and family. He was a member of Greensboro First United Methodist Church and the Elks Lodge Chapter 2849.

He is survived by his wife, Ann O. Smith of Greensboro; daughter Leslie Martin and her husband, Joseph, of Crawfordville, Ga.; son Thomas Simon Smith of Greensboro; daughter Heather Christiano and her husband, Timothy, of Rockville, Md.; four grandsons, Sean and Adam Smith and Kyle and John Christiano; and many relatives and friends.

A memorial service will be held at a later date. The family will hold a private celebration of his life on his 87th birthday, Friday, Oct. 2, 2020. 

The family requests that any donations be made to the Oconee Regional Humane Society. McCommons Funeral Home (109 West Broad St., Greensboro, Ga., 706-453-2626) is in charge of arrangements. Visit mccommonsfuneralhome.com to sign the guest register.

This is a paid notice.