Barry Alvin Smith

Barry Alvin Smith, 62, who resided in Fort Collins, CO, courageously and peacefully passed into eternity early in the morning on December 9, 2013, at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins unexpectedly from pneumonia. He was lovingly greeted by Jesus, His Savior and Lord, his parents, family and friends who have gone on before him. He was very tired and had suffered a lot in his whole life and is not suffering any longer and is very happy in Heaven. He was ready and looked forward to seeing Jesus and being with Him throughout eternity. He was born on March 20, 1951 in Mesa, AZ, the third child of six, to Alvin Norris and Ida Mae Hixson Smith. He was in Kindergarten when his parents moved to Dugway, Utah and later moved back to Mesa, AZ where he completed elementary school. His family moved to Longmont, CO in August, 1963 where he started junior high school. He attended Longmont High School several years until his family moved to Fort Collins where he completed high school. He was a 1970 graduate of Fort Collins High School, an Eagle Boy Scout, enlisted in the Marines when he was 21 in April 1972, during the Viet Nam War, and proudly served our country. He was a proud and happy graduate from the Denver Emily Griffith Auto Mechanic Technical School and it was his passion to work on cars which he learned from his father. He started working at an early age and as a young teenager enjoyed making his own spending money by delivering the local newspaper in his neighborhood in Mesa, AZ. He earned his Life Saving badge in Boy Scouts and enjoyed being a Life Guard at the local swimming pool. He enjoyed everything about being a Boy Scout especially making new friends, camping, hiking and the challenges it offered him and enjoyed playing the trumpet in junior high and high school. He also enjoyed playing baseball as a kid. He enjoyed living in Denver where he lived most of his adult life and where he fell in love with and married his wife, Barbara. He enjoyed being married and learned sign language to be able to communicate better with Barbara since she was deaf. He enjoyed their pet cats and birds. He moved to Fort Collins in June, 2000. He enjoyed working in a variety of different professions in Denver and Fort Collins. He loved to ride a bicycle and his daily routine became riding 4 or 5 miles a day, every day of the week all around town and enjoyed ringing the bell at Christmas time for several years for the Fort Collins Salvation Army. He enjoyed being involved with the Salvation Army and grew in the Lord through their ministry. Barry was a people person and very friendly to everyone. He liked to strike up a conversation with anyone he met. Everyone who knew him liked him. He especially always liked to meet, visit, and drink coffee with his Veteran brothers for hours on end in a restaurant. He could tell a good story! He was a very cheerful, upbeat, positive, sociable guy that had a big smile on his face. He also helped anyone needing any kind of help. He loaned people money when they needed it and would give them the shirt off his back. Barry was a very smart, intelligent, confident, strong-willed, independent, brave, sensitive and proud man. He was looking forward to taking college classes and was very excited about this opportunity. He had a new lease on life and had an opportunity to be very successful. He enjoyed life and lived it to the fullest possible. He is survived by his brothers, Ken Joan in Virginia Beach, VA, Richard in Fort Collins, Randy in Windsor, CO, his sisters, Debbie Eckdahl in Denver and Jennie Dachs Jim in Dexter, MO; 1 Uncle, 1 Aunt, many cousins, many nieces, nephews, great nieces, great nephews and father-in-law, Carrol Birkey in Denver. Barry was preceded in death by his wife, Barbara Vaye Johnson, Aug. 30, 2001; our father, Aug. 8, 2003 and our mother, Oct. 8, 2009. He loved all his family and they were very special to him and knew when all the birthdays were for his nieces and nephews. He would become so happy and excited hearing about all the activities the kids were involved in and all their accomplishments. He remembered all his nieces and nephews and loved them and was very proud of them. He really loved all children. He wanted children of his own but sadly and graciously accepted the fact that he and Barbara wouldn't be able to have any. His life was unnecessarily cut too short and it has been very hard for our family to accept the fact that he is really gone. We are missing him terribly! We will keep him very close in our hearts and the memories of all the loving fun times we had with him and will remember his happy sparkling eyes, great big happy smile, big loving heart and his hugs and kisses for all of us! We have the promise that we will see him again one day in heaven where he is waiting to greet each one of us and we will have a wonderful family reunion! Memorial contributions may be made to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation or the Fort Collins Salvation Army in care of Bohlender Funeral Chapel, 121 W. Olive, Ft. Collins, CO 80521. Cremation has taken place and a Full Military Memorial Service will be arranged for this summer at the City of Fort Collins Rose Lawn Memorial Cemetery when family and all his friends can attend.