Cole Smith's Obituary
Following a brief illness Cole Smith, age 92, departed to confer with fellow Renaissance men in the sky on Sunday morning, August 25, 2019.Descended from early settlers on Cape Cod, including passengers on subsequent voyages of the Mayflower; his family settled in Topeka, Kansas when it was still a territory.Cole Smith, FAIA, moved to Dallas in 1950 beginning a career spanning 69 years. In 1993 he was elected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. Cole’s body of work contained over 2000 projects. He enjoyed recalling and describing the intricacies and uniqueness of those projects, and remembered every client on the list. He designed countless houses, 8 churches, medical offices, and two small hospitals. One of his highest honors was the opportunity to work with Holocaust survivors to create the first Dallas Holocaust Memorial housed in the Jewish Community Center, which he also designed.Many of his clients became dear friends. Admired by them as a teacher of design and architecture, Cole was quick to point out the countless things his clients taught him.Truly one of a kind, Cole was not only an esteemed architect, but an artist, inventor, steamboat designer, amateur entomologist, talented blacksmith, sometimes beekeeper, and bookbinder. He and his son, Dean, built a 20 foot paddlewheel steam boat, and a garden steam railroad which still operate after 40 years. He loved classical music, and played the trombone in college, specializing in the big band sound. Fascinated by history, he had a special passion for Churchill. An opera lover, he attended performances in great opera houses around the world, from Sydney, Australia, to Dresden, Covent Garden and La Scalia.During his last months, he and his beloved wife, Sherry Hayslip Smith, spent evenings making lists and thinking back over 25 years of travel together, savoring art, architecture, design, and music in countless cities. A perpetual student of life, and his craft, he wanted to know more about everything. Only a year ago, Cole and Sherry enjoyed a trip to Japan and China to study design, art, and culture. At age 91, Cole scaled the steps unaided, and enjoyed strolling the Great Wall.Cole was born in Topeka, Kansas December 7, 1926. While attending Topeka High School, he worked part time in the Santa Fe shops during the height of the war effort, beginning college at Kansas State University at age 16. His education was interrupted to serve in the Philippines during WWII. Upon returning from the war, the G.I. Bill allowed him to sample many of his multitude of interests from entomology to zoology while continuing his architecture studies. The curriculum had shifted to the Bauhaus Style away from the Beaux Art curriculum of his first two years—affectively making him one of the few working architects trained in both disciplines.Following his studies at Kansas State, Cole married Carolyn “Caddy” Brownell in Cape Cod. He brought her to Dallas where he began his career, and they raised three wonderful children together. After a few years working with others, he struck out on his own as an architect, beginning a 60 year partnership with Bob Ekblad with whom he formed Smith Ekblad Architects and Engineers.Cole never stopped sketching and painting. Trips to Antarctica and the Galapagos in his eighties provided plenty of fuel for painting vistas most of us will never see.Family held great importance to Cole. He was preceded in death by his parents, Catharine Cole Smith and Hall Smith, and his brothers, Hall Smith, Jr., and Doane Smith, and his cousin, Wilbur H. (Bud) Cole.He is survived by his wife, Sherry Hayslip Smith; his children Cole Smith, Jr. (Vicki), Dean Smith (Linda), Cathy Smith Hovey (Emerson); former wife, Caddy Smith; step-children, Peyton Hayslip, and Allan Hayslip; and numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.A connoisseur of joy in life, even in severe illness, Cole proclaimed what a lucky man he was. He said he felt so fortunate to have done the things he had done, to have known the people he had known, and that he was a better person for having lived as he did. As several friends commented, Cole was always teaching us to be better people, and how to really live life.Services are planned for Friday, September 6th, at 11am, at Church of the Incarnation 3966 McKinney Avenue, Dallas, TX 75204.In lieu of flowers, a scholarship fund in honor of Cole has been established at the School of Architecture at Kansas State University Foundation so that the education of unique, talented, and curious students like Cole might be able to pursue a career in architecture. Contributions may be sent to: KSU Foundation, 1800 Kimball Avenue, Ste. 200, Manhattan, Kansas 66502; please indicate fund Cole Smith-M47271. To make a gift online, go to www.ksufoundation.org/give/memorials.
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