Effie Faye Kouri Smith Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Effie Faye Kouri Smith, 87, of Wichita Falls, died on Tuesday, February 13, 2018. Graveside services will be at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 17, 2018, at Brinkman Cemetery, Brinkman, Oklahoma. Arrangements are under the direction of Lunn's Colonial Funeral Home. Family visitation will be from 6:00 until 7:00 p.m. on Friday, February 16, at Lunn’s. Effie Faye Kouri-Smith was born to Lebanese immigrants, George Kouri and Helen Swyden Kouri, from Marjeyoun, Lebanon. Effie Faye entered into life Wednesday, August 6, 1930 in Brinkman, Oklahoma. She left Brinkman at the age of seventeen after losing both of her parents. She moved to Dallas to be with her brothers and sisters. They remained close all of their lives believing “all for one and one for all”. They could chastise each other , “but no one else had better try”. She believed that all families should be this way. Her siblings and their families had a yearly three day reunion in January for 45 consecutive years. When they were together and had anything “important to say”, they would break out in Lebanese. After marrying she moved to Daingerfield, then Wichita Falls, Texas where she was a telephone operator with Southwestern –Bell/AT&T for over 25 years. She started out saying “number please”. After retiring she lived in Jermyn, Texas, for 25 years which she enjoyed because she was “a country girl”. Throughout her life, she was a quiet, private person with an infectious laugh. She was a forgiving person; especially with her children and her brothers and sisters. If she passed a field of cotton, she would tell you that she picked cotton growing up. Her favorite room in the house was the kitchen. She would tell you “when I swept the kitchen floor, my mother said I had mopped it”. Every birthday she recited the events of your birth and would cook your favorite meal. She might also tell you about the 3 moles on her leg which she believed represented her children and the order of their birth”. She enjoyed a freezer of ice cream in August. She believed that dogs belonged outside. Chickens were her favorite pets! She would often reverse the numbers in her age; saying she was 68 instead of 86. She said letters were a thing of the past, so emails were okay. She would not start her day before receiving an email from her son. She looked forward to a visit and a cup of coffee. She loved to dance and you might find her dancing by herself, singing as she danced. You would often find her outside examining her plants and picking the fruits of her labor. She looked forward to her 4 o’clock visit with her daughter and those two games of Skip-Bo. God blessed her with good health. She didn’t believe in medication and if she had two pills to take she would often say “one is enough for me because “I am little”. Better yet, she would judge her dosage by the size of the pill! Cooking was her “love language”. She was always cooking the foods of her youth; Kibbi, Grape Leaves, or Tabbuli. Her family knew it would be good because she believed in no short cuts. Her faith in Christ was simple, but firm, and she depended upon him daily. She believed that “to be absent from the body was to be present with the Lord.” She went to her heavenly home February 13, 2018 hearing “well done my good and faithful servant”. She then heard her brothers and sisters; Laveta, Catherine, Woodrow, Namon George and Kammell say ; “Effie Faye is here…let’s eat”! She is survived by her children and their spouses; Linda and Don Jarvis, Billy Don and Henrilu Smith, Dewayne and Bernadette Smith. Grandchildren; Chad Johnston and Camille Smith, and all the children who through marriage loved her as their Sittie/Grandmother; Carrie Gardner, Amy McClane, Dan Paul Roberts, Zach Andree, Caitlin Hancock, Hayden Andree, Sarah Byerley, Megan Scurlock, and Brianna Griff. For those desiring, memorial contributions may be sent to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105.

Effie Faye Kouri Smith

August 6, 1930 - February 13, 2018