Thais Margaret Wild Smith

Thais Margaret Wild Smith, 90, of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, wife of the late Joshua Daniel Smith passed away Monday, June 17, 2013. A Funeral Service celebrating Thais' life will be held Thursday, June 20, 2013 in J. HENRY STUHR, INC. MOUNT PLEASANT CHAPEL, 1494 Mathis Ferry Road at 6:30 pm. Her Mass of Christian Burial and Prayers of Final Commendation and Farewell will be held at a later date in Greenwood Cemetery, New Orleans, LA . The family will receive friends Thursday, June 20, 2013 from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm in Stuhr's Mount Pleasant Chapel.

Mrs. Smith was born June 10, 1923 in New Orleans, Louisiana, daughter of the late Frederick Arthur and Veronica Elisa Duntze Wild. She lived most of her life in New Orleans, LA, summering in Biloxi, MS. In 1999, she moved with her husband, J.D. to Mt. Pleasant, SC. She graduated, in Biology, from Newcomb College of Tulane University at age 18, in 1942, and was married one week later, on her 19th birthday. She loved reading and learning her entire life, especially about history. She enjoyed playing bridge with friends, working crossword puzzles, and was an ace at Jeopardy. Other talents she possessed in abundance were gardening, sewing and knitting, home improvement projects, cooking, and she possessed a wonderful soft spot for dogs, especially her beloved Lorelei. Her family and friends knew her to be a great New Orleans cook and lover of New Orleans' seafood and cocktails. She loved to sing the lyrics of hundreds of songs, especially from Broadway shows and the war years, and was great at memorizing poetry, even in German. Over the years, she was a member of the Mt. Pleasant Garden Club, Lake Vista Garden Club in New Orleans, her church choir, and was committed to support of our military veterans. In her sporting life, she was an expert table tennis player, and in later years never missed a tennis tournament on television. She even knew the stats on all the players. She was a member of Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church.

Thais is survived by her children, Cynthia Smith (Jose) Hernandez of Mount Pleasant, SC, and Eric Ney (Laura Melancon) Smith of New Orleans, LA; her grandchildren, Hillary Smith (Peter Hobart) Ripley of Brooklyn, NY, Jose Daniel Hernandez of Charleston, SC, Andres Hernandez of Charleston, SC, Maria Elisa (Michael Heyward Epting) Hernandez Budds of Portland, OR, and John Connor Montgomery of New Orleans, LA; and her great-granddaughters, Hawthorne Russell Ripley of Brooklyn, NY, and Lupe Clementine Elisa Budds of Portland, OR. During her last months, she became very close to Maru Reygadas. She is sadly missed by her constant companion of the last ten years, Lorelei Smith, her miniature Schnauzer.

She was lovingly cared for by Angela Ferguson, Verletta Benbow, and Bertha Nesbitt.

Memorials may be made in Thais' name to Pet Helpers, 1447 Folly Road, Charleston, SC 29412 or Charleston Animal Society, 2455 Remount Road, North Charleston, SC 29406.