Russell Kirk Smith

Russell Kirk Smith was born on a cold Sunday morning of February 4, 1968 at St. Mary’s Hospital in Reno, Nevada as the 1st child of Gregory Kirk Smith & Darlene Diane Hills Smith. Russell was 6 weeks premature & weighed 5 pounds, 1 ounce & was 19 1/4 inches long. He spent 2 weeks in the hospital where he dropped down to 4 pounds. Russell would grow to be 6.1 feet in adulthood.

Russell’s 1st 10 years of life were in Reno; then the family purchased South Jetty Campground in Florence, Oregon where Russell would do a security check every night on his motorcycle. This was the beginning of his love of motorcycles. The Smith family moved to Aloha, Oregon where they lived on Cooper Mountain & where Russell would learn to take care of Jim, the old horse that came with the house. In 1983, the Smith’s moved to Tempe, Arizona & Russell attended Corona del Sol High School & was in the 1986 Class. After graduation, Russell worked at Dillard’s Warehouse; moved to Fair Oaks, California for a year; & then returned to Arizona, where he started working at Professional Salon Systems where he rose thru the ranks to Pro Shop manager & then to outside sales.

In 1996, Russell went back to school at Arizona Conservatory of Music & became a Sound Engineer. But his employment sent him into the telecommunications field starting as a Technician at Access Communications & ending as a Senior Solution Architect at Palo Alto Technology with several companies in between due to corporate buyouts. Russell was a technology guru who loved all of the latest gadgets & who could fix, talk, install, etc. about any computer/data/communication/electronic field.

The greatest joy in Russell’s life was his son, Daylan Robert Smith, who was the apple of his dad’s eyes. Russell was the biggest supporter of Daylan’s football in youth leagues & at Skyline High School; chaperoning field trips; attending all school events, etc… Then the two of them moved into motorcycles-matching ones of course.

Russell loved books, movies, history, politics, 80’s music (especially Adam Ant), decorating his home & yard where the neighbors loved the Halloween & Christmas decorations; organizing his garage & massive tool collection; remodeling his mom’s or his house & working on cars & motorcycles, which Russell would complete at a 1000% as a 100%; wasn’t good enough. His workmanship was excellent. Having a conversation with Russell was so enjoyable as he was so informed on so many subjects.

Russell was the most caring son to his mom; brother to his 3 younger sisters; uncle to his numerous nieces & nephews; & best dad to his 4 legged best friend “Cleo”, who he adored & pampered. Russell passed away in his sleep, due to several medical issues, on Sunday, January 5, 2025. He is preceded in death by his dad, Gregory K. Smith; his sister, Christine K. Smith; & his nephew, Brice R. S. Smith, along with his aunt, uncles, & grandparents. He is survived by his son, Daylan R. Smith; his mother, Darlene D. Smith; his sisters: Kimberly K. Wing & Denise D. Smith; his beloved sweetheart canine, “Miss Cleo”; nieces, nephews, cousins, aunt, & uncle. The world was a better place because Russell had lived on it…