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Taunce Vernitha Ida Smith, 84, of Fernandina Beach, Fla., passed away Monday, September 23, 2019 at Terrace of Jacksonville.
Born in Douglas, Ga., she was the daughter of the late Ernest and Pauline Underwood Gillis. She grew up in Georgia and lived there until she moved to Fernandina Beach with her husband, John A. Smith Jr., in 1952 for his job at Container Corporation of America.
A homemaker, she loved working in her yard and was a former member of Springhill Baptist Church. Over the years, she also enjoyed playing the guitar and singing bluegrass music. She performed locally and at festivals, including at Twin Oaks in Hoboken, Ga.
She was predeceased by her husband in 2001 and as well as her three brothers, Pert Gillis, James Gillis, and Harvey Gillis.
She leaves behind her sons, James R. and Ernest L. Smith, both of Fernandina Beach; her daughter, Linda Heberlie of Farmington, Mo.; her brothers, Ray Gillis of Decatur, Ga. and E. L. Meeks of Douglas; five grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren, as well as several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, September 26, 2019 in the Burgess Chapel of Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors with Chaplain Jackie Hayes officiating. The family will receive friends from 10 a.m. until the hour of the service. She will be laid to rest beside her husband at Hughes Cemetery at a later date.
Please share your memories and condolences at www.oxleyheard.com.
Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors
