Cristina Elita Smith

Our remarkable sister Cris passed away peacefully after a two year battle with esophageal cancer. Kathleen, Greg and Libby were with her for her last day.

Cris was born in Los Angeles to parents Adelaide and Gordon Smith. She leaves behind her older sister Sharon, younger sister Kathleen and older brother Greg and his wife, Libby.

Cris was enraptured with nature and spent some early years after college in the Forest Service, She worked in the Sierras, the Trinity Alps and in Montana.

She traveled many times to Hawaii and loved snorkeling with turtles and ever-present parrotfish. Cris also flew up to remote parts of Alaska to view brown bears, moose and elk. She also rafted through the Grand Canyon.

Over the past fifteen years she’s been a year-round, almost daily, ocean swimmer, joined by her brother. Cris always said it was the best part of the day.

Cris loved the poetry of Gary Snyder and Mary Oliver. She read widely and deeply in philosophy and literature.

For the past twenty-four years she was involved with the recovery community both professionally at Cottage Rehab as well with Alcoholics Anonymous. Please consider a donation to an animal shelter or Bethal house in Cris’s memory.

We deeply miss Cris every day