BRETT WILLIAM SMITH Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

Three score and a dozen years ago in the middle of the twentieth century, Jean Fraser and William Smith brought a little BS into the world on June 7, 1950. A proud Orange County boy and oldest of five, Brett William Smith was raised in Fullerton and spent his life in Southern California. His family did briefly move to Wisconsin, but soon realized that they were not compatible with the weather. Despite this experience with a real winter, his desire for life in a small college town brought him to Northern Arizona University. This again did not last long as during baseball tryouts, a ground ball got past him at third base and he was unable to retrieve it from a bank of snow. It was then that Brett decided to return home and go to what he referred to as a small private college in Los Angeles, the University of Southern California. Here he earned both his Bachelor's Degree and his Master's Degree in Education. During this time, he also worked in the parking lot of a local entertainment company, Disneyland. In addition to being a tram driver there, he also served as the coach of the parking lot softball team where he met his future wife from the Disneyland Hotel, Patricia. Upon graduation, he wrote to as many school districts in the state of California as he could find. After receiving a phone call and accepting a job offer, he realized he wasn't sure who he had just talked to and had to call back to confirm that it was a place called Yucaipa. Once he found it on a map, he would go on to spend his full professional career working in the Yucaipa - Calimesa Joint Unified School District where he began as a teacher, later a counselor, and finally a school psychologist. Over the course of his career, he spent time at every school in the district and in addition to continued success, received the respect and admiration of his colleagues and community. After first being diagnosed with cancer almost two decades ago, he continued to work but ultimately retired a few years later. With the support of his family and friends, he would go on to beat this cancer three times and battle through a number of other illnesses. He came to fully personify his college’s motto, 'Fight On!', as he kept fighting through these challenges and consistently surpassing medical projections. He spent his remaining years supporting and encouraging his family, contributing to their lives in any way that he could. He leaves behind his wife Patricia, his children Brittany (& Toby), Katie (& Garrett), and Shane (& Melanie), and his grandchildren Taylor and Carson. He will now finally get some well-earned peace and continue to live through their successes. He will be dearly missed, but his presence will be felt every day.

BRETT WILLIAM SMITH

June 7, 1950 - June 16, 2022