GEORGE C. SMITH

George C. Smith departed this life on Saturday, July 4, 2026 at his residence. He was a Native of Utica, MS., and a resident of Gretna, LA. He was reared in a loving Christian home and nurtured in the faith at Green Hill Holiness Church and Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Utica. George graduated from Jackson State University in 1972 with a Bachelor of Science in Education. He earned his Master of Social Work from the University of Kansas in 1976, and in August 2001, he achieved his Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work from Jackson State University. His dissertation — a study of factors associated with the employment of single African American mothers — reflected the heart that guided his entire career: a devotion to empowering Black communities, Black mothers, the elderly, and those the world too often overlooks.

Dr. Smith dedicated nearly five decades to public service. He served as Coordinator of the Southwest Mississippi Mental Health Complex and as Executive Director of the Housing Authority of Yazoo City before beginning a distinguished career with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. There he rose from Resident Initiatives Program Specialist to Director of Public Housing for the State of Mississippi, overseeing fifty-six housing authorities, and later Senior Public Housing Revitalization Specialist in New Orleans, serving twenty-one housing authorities across the region. He went on to direct Family Services and the Disaster Housing Assistance Program for Jefferson Parish, and through his private consulting firm, Smith & Smith Associates, he provided counsel to housing authorities and community organizations for more than forty years.

Dr. Smith believed deeply in empowering others through education, skill enhancement, and entrepreneurship. As Adjunct Instructor at Jackson State University and Tougaloo College for over two decades, he shaped generations of social workers in values, ethics, and service — teaching not only how to serve, but how to build.

Beloved husband of Rebecca Myles Smith for 48 years. Devoted father of Cliffon Yvette Smith of Washington, DC, and Rebecca (Christian R. Johnson) C. Smith Johnson of Houston, TX. Son of the late  Ivory Smith, Sr. and Bessie Marshall Smith. Brother of Jesse Dean Smith of Birmingham, AL. and the late Carlvin Smith, Ivory Smith, Jr., Helen Smith McGill, Earnestine Stubbs, Naomi Smith Denham, and Christine Smith Neeley. Also survived by his godson Anthony Carlyle of Starkville, MS., and a host of grandchildren, great grandchildren, loving nieces, nephews, cousins, colleagues, and friends. Relatives and friends of the family, also pastors, officers, and members of and all neighboring churches are invited to attend the Celebration of Life at Green Hill Missionary Baptist Church 1155 Hickstown Road • Utica, MS., on Saturday, July 11, 2026, at 11:00a.m. Pastor Samuel Harris Jr.,officiating.  Arrangements by Davis Mortuary Service, 230 Monroe St. Gretna, LA To view and sign the guestbook, please go to www.davismortuaryservice.com.