Velma was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, and aunt who adored her family and treasured spending time with them.

Mass of Christian Burial: 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 5, 2024 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 409 Cherry St, Columbia, PA 17512.

The family will receive friends for visitation beginning at 10:00 a.m. until service time.

Burial will follow, and she will be laid to rest beside her late husband, at Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery.

Velma E. Smith, 100, of Columbia passed away peacefully on October 30, 2024. She was born in Columbia to the late George and Pauline Abel Grab and was a lifelong resident of this area.

Velma was a graduate of Columbia High School with the Class of 1941 and went on to graduate from the former St. Joseph’s Hospital School of Nursing in 1944. She was a registered nurse with the former Columbia Hospital for thirty years before her retirement in 1995. Velma was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, and aunt who adored her family and treasured spending time with them. She was a lifelong and devoted parishioner of Holy Trinity Catholic Church where she was a member of the Altar Rose Society.

Velma leaves behind her four children, Lt. Col. Ann Louise Smith USAF (ret.) of Ft. Worth, TX, Elizabeth V., wife of Jeffrey B. Becker of Hellam, Kathleen M. Smith of Tucker, GA, Eugene F. Smith, Jr. of Columbia; three grandchildren, Amy Abel, wife of Bill Seneft of York, Lisa, wife of Dr. Christopher Gilbert of Mount Pleasant, SC, Jean, wife of Shawn Leiphart of Hellam; five great grandchildren, Madeline Abel, Lauren Abel, Colton Leiphart, Ella Gilbert, Nathan Gilbert; two sisters, Janet Gainer, Alice Marie Sensenig; numerous nieces and nephews and a large extended family. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband Eugene F. Smith, Sr. in 1980 and six siblings, Thomas, Raymond, Robert, and Samuel Grab, Anna “Sue” Welsh, and Pauline Giandalia.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 5, 2024 at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, 409 Cherry St, Columbia, PA 17512. Fr. Michael Grab, Velma’s nephew, will officiate. The family will receive friends for visitation beginning at 10:00 a.m. until service time. Burial will follow, and she will be laid to rest beside her late husband, at Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery. Velma’s family would like to thank the staff of St. Anne’s Retirement Community for the loving care they gave to Velma. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Holy Trinity Catholic Church or Our Lady of the Angels Catholic School. Arrangements by the Clyde W. Kraft Funeral Home, Inc. Columbia/Landisville www.clydekraft.com

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