DONALD P.  SMITH , 93, of Aurelia, Iowa, passed away Thursday morning, July 11, 2019 in Accura Healthcare of Aurelia.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, July 15 ^th , at 10:30 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Aurelia, Iowa. Rev. Cris Decious will officiate. Burial will be in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery at Aurelia, Iowa. There will be a family prayer service at 10:15 a.m. at the church on Monday. Visitation will be on Sunday from 1 p.m. until 7 p.m. with the family present from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. at the Boothby Funeral Home in Cherokee, Iowa. Online condolences can be left at www.boothbyfuneral.com

Donald was born on May 16, 1926 at Cleghorn, Iowa to Darwin and Elizabeth (Kinzel) Smith. Don attended school in Cleghorn. At the age of 14, he started to work for John & Mary Bergman. They had two rules for him; (1) attend school (2) to visit his mother on Sunday, which he kept faithfully. He graduated from Cleghorn High School in 1945. After graduating, he worked for Holga Lindgren and then for Ludwig Anderson in which he received part of the crop. By saving his money, he was able to go into farming on his own.

On November 21, 1948, he was married to Delores Gottsche at the Cleghorn Presbyterian Church and started their married life on a farm south of Marcus and then they moved to a farm south of Cleghorn. In 1959, they purchased a farm north of Aurelia. In 1979, they moved into the town of Aurelia.  They celebrated their 63 ^rd wedding anniversary before her passing on December 9, 2011.

Don liked to grow a big garden where he had at least 100 tomato plants. He also loved to grow gladiola flowers, especially red ones.  His love of fishing was passed onto his grandchildren.  He liked to play cards.  In later life, he learned how to bake cookies and bars.  At the age of 90, he started to make step stools out of barn wood where he would draw pictures on the bottom and sign and date them.  He also made crosses and bird houses.  He also liked to go gambling.  In 2009, he helped John with the harvest for the last time.  He liked it most when his grandchildren and especially his great grandchildren could come and visit him.  He had a granddaughter Sadie Byers born on his birthday in 2017.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Darwin and Elizabeth Smith, his beloved wife Delores in 2011, his brother and his wife, Milton and Wilma Smith, his sister and her husband Marjorie and Roger Parker, his brother and his wife Francis and Phillis Smith, his sister and her husband Lois and Mac McGowan, his sister Betty Wychoff,  his sister and her husband Iris and Lyle Schmillen, his brother Robert Smith, his sister and her husband Mary and Richard Lundell, sisters in law and brothers in laws, Evanell and Loran Thoms, Arlene and Loren Schlenger, George and Doris Gottsche, and Harold Hazen.

He is survived by his son John Smith and wife Marcia of Aurelia, Iowa; daughter Deborah Engdahl and husband Dennis of Aurelia, Iowa, son Joel Smith and his wife Jeanne Ann of Yukon, OK; Eight grandchildren Molly and Jeffrey Stahl, Jillian and Robert Byers, Nick and Becky Engdahl, Katie and Eric Gunkelman, Kyle and Melissa Engdahl, Tyson and Ashley Smith, Riley Smith, and Bailey Smith; Fifteen great grandchildren, Madison and Jameson Stahl, Blake and Sadie Byers, Emma and Abby Engdahl, Lucy, Clare, Dane, and Maggie Gunkelman, Megan Engdahl, Chase Colman, T.J., Zander, and Avelyn Smith; sister in law Betty Smith of Cherokee, Iowa; sister in law and husband Shirley and LeRoy Pederson of Spirit Lake, Iowa and sister in law Anita Hazen of LeMars, Iowa; as well as many nieces and nephews.