Empty Bowls Organizer Barbara Smith Dies at 80

Barbara Joan Smith, 80, died peacefully at her home on Feb. 10, 2020.

The funeral service will be Friday, Feb. 14, 2020, at 11 a.m. in the Chapel of Waller Funeral Home with the Rev. Eddie Rester officiating. Burial will follow in Oxford Memorial Cemetery. Visitation will be Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020, from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. in West Hall of Waller Funeral Home.

Barbara Smith

She was born Nov. 18, 1939, to Diamontina Oliveria and Manuel Michael Camara of Fall River, Massachusetts. A longtime resident of Oxford and a graduate of the University of Mississippi, she worked for the University for many years in various roles, including Financial Aid, the Mississippi Mineral Resources Institute, and most recently as an administrative assistant at Insight Park.

However, her passion was for her many civic interests. She was one of the founding volunteers and organizers for Empty Bowls as well as a publicist and volunteer for the Pantry of Oxford and Lafayette County. She served as a program chair for the Ole Miss Faculty & Staff Retiree Association, as an officer with the Ole Miss Association of Educational Office Professionals, as a member of the Red Hat Group, and had previously served on the board for the American Red Cross of North Mississippi. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her daughter Carlyn Edwards of Melbourne, Florida.

She is survived by her husband, Max D. Hipp of Oxford; her daughter, Johnna Kolaks of Fairhope, Alabama; granddaughters, Morgan and Hanna Kolaks of St. Louis, Missouri; grandsons, Sam and Paul Edwards of Melbourne, Florida; stepchildren, Melissa (Matt) Zerfoss of Jackson, Tennessee, and Max B. Hipp of Oxford, and step-grandsons, Nick and Zach Zerfoss of Jackson, Tennessee.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations in Barbara’s memory be made to the Pantry of Oxford and Lafayette County, P.O. Box 588, Oxford, MS 38655.

Courtesy of Waller Funeral Home