Tommy R. Smith

Tommy Ray Smith was born on 15 December 1950 in Bacon County, Georgia, to Jack Smith and Chloe Henriott Smith. He was also raised alongside his stepmother, Helen Smith. His paternal grandparents were Julian and Kate Smith and his maternal grandparents Hilton and Edith Henriott.

His work ethic began early. His grandfather planted peanuts for him to sell at the local tobacco warehouse, and Smith often said those childhood experiences taught him the importance of hard work, building relationships and earning the trust of others, lessons he credited with preparing him for his political career. He attended Georgia Southern University and became a blueberry and pine tree farmer in Bacon County.

Smith was first elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1978 and served 16 terms, retiring in 2012 after 34 years and service under six governors. His district took in Bacon and Pierce counties in south east Georgia, and in his last terms it was numbered District 168.

He was known for personal, door to door politics. He often campaigned in a patriotic themed classic Chevrolet pickup truck that featured in parades across the area, and he made a point of speaking to and shaking hands with everyone present wherever he went. He helped guide the small town of Offerman through its re-chartering as a city in 1996.

A conservative Democrat for most of his career, Smith chaired the House State Planning and Community Affairs Committee. In April 2004, after 26 years in the legislature, he announced in Alma, with Governor Sonny Perdue beside him, that he was switching to the Republican Party. He told UPI that conservative legislation tended to stay in committee and never came up for a floor vote, and that eight out of ten of his constituents supported those issues. "This decision goes a lot deeper than politics with me, it's what I feel is the right thing to do," he said.

When Republicans took control of the House in 2005, Speaker Glenn Richardson kept Smith as chairman of State Planning and Community Affairs, the committee through which all local legislation passed. In his final sessions he also served on the Appropriations, Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, and Defense and Veterans Affairs committees.

Smith remained deeply connected to his family farm and to the communities he represented. His family's obituary paid special tribute to his lifelong friend Dianne Bennett, who stood by him through good times and difficult ones.

He was survived by his sister, Sherrie Dyal, and her husband Eugene; his stepsister, Peggy Murphy; nieces Diana Britt and Allison Haddock; a step-nephew and step-niece; several great-nieces and a great-nephew, along with many cousins.

Tommy Smith died peacefully at his residence near Alma, Georgia, on Thursday 15 October 2026, at the age of 75. No cause of death was made public.

His death was reported by The Blackshear Times, which recalled his long service to Pierce County. Visitation was held on 19 October and his funeral took place at 11 a.m. on Tuesday 20 October 2026 in the chapel of Crosby Funeral Home in Alma, with the Rev. Calvin Morris and the Rev. Wayne Woods officiating and a eulogy by Marsha Brown. The family asked that donations be made to Alma Christian Fellowship Church or to Samaritan's Purse in place of flowers.

Smith's 34 years in the Georgia House made him one of the longest serving members of his era, and his 2004 party switch was part of the wider movement of rural conservative Democrats in Georgia towards the Republican Party. Locally he was remembered above all for his constituent service.

Offerman Mayor Brenda Denison said: "Pierce County lost a great friend. Tommy as a representative and friend helped a lot of people. He saw the needs in our communities because he was seen and heard in them." His family wrote that, from a young boy selling peanuts to a respected leader under Georgia's Gold Dome, his life was one of faith, dedication and service.