Smiley M. Lumpkin, loved by so many, passed away on July 4, 2010, at Ellis Hospital after a brief illness. He would have turned 92 on August 16..

Smiley was a native of Alabama, where he developed a wit and warmth that most of us Yankees can only dream of. He was also always the consummate gentleman, and moved with ease among people of different backgrounds.

Upon being asked how he came to be named Smiley, he would patiently explain that he was in fact named after his Uncle Smiley. He had a lifelong fondness for telling jokes, many of them requiring exquisite timing and control of intonation and facial expression. He was a great Southern humorist in our midst.

He came north at an early age, having joined the Navy in 1938. During the two years before the entrance of the U.S. into WWII, he saw much of the Caribbean and South America. During the War, he participated in the Murmansk Run. He served on the USS Wichita. Later, he was recalled into the Korean Conflict, during which time he served on the USS Wasp, having witnessed what was at that time the largest non-battle naval disaster in U.S. history – the severing of the destroyer Hobson by the Wasp during mid-Atlantic maneuvers.

After the Korean Conflict, Smiley was hired by General Electric as an electrician in 1954, but he was soon recognized for his razor-sharp intelligence and ability to motivate others. He rose through the ranks of management, ultimately serving as the Manager of Auxiliary Operations at the Kesselring Site of General Electric, until his retirement in 1982.

Smiley’s great passion was antique clock restoration. He developed this interest while still employed, and it readily replaced work as his pastime after his retirement in 1982. With other enthusiasts he formed the Rip Van Winkle Chapter of the American Clock and Watchmakers’ Association, which has met regularly at the Burnt Hills Baptist Church Fellowship Hall since its inception in 1984. For most of the years of its existence, Smiley led these meetings, and he gave his last “lecture” there in May.

Since 1954, Smiley was a member of the Burnt Hills Baptist Church, whose baptistery he designed and helped to build in the 1960’s. He was active in this loving community, and served as a Deaco n, and as a member of many committees.

Smiley will be missed by the many people he took into his heart. He was predeceased by his wife, “Becky” only last December. He is survived by his daughter, Peggy de Wolf and her fiancé, James Bogart, of Princeton, NJ, and his granddaughter, Sarah de Wolf and her significant other, Calixte Monast, of Philadelphia, Pa., along with many loving and loyal nieces, among them Betty Falcone (Al) of Wayne, Pa., Enid Prettiman (Ron) of Greensburg, Pa., Lauren Sites of Damon, Tx, Karyn Callaway of Houston, Tx, Dale Strban of Houston, Tx. and Peggy Bierley of Birmingham, Ala.

Special thanks go to Dr. Roger and Donna Malebranche, and to Donna Kimball, for their active caring of Smiley during times that he needed assistance and care. Special thanks also go to Smiley’s neighbors Betts and Al Montenaro, good friends Jack and Ruth Russell, Bob and Pam Colligan, Sandy and Matt Young, and other friends who visited frequently and helped in all ways possible. An additional special thanks go to the members of the Burnt Hills Baptist Church, with Pastor Trudy and its Member Care Committee, especially Jane and Jim Cottrell and Sherry Harwood, who without fail provided support and loving friendship during so many years. Finally, special thanks is given to the staff of Ellis Hospital who treated both Smiley and Becky with loving and expert care during the times of their hospitalizations. Their efforts will not be forgotten.

A memorial service for Smiley will be held at the Burnt Hills Baptist Church, Kingsley Road in Burnt Hills New York on September 11, 2010 at 11 am.  Relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend.