Ilene Joy Smith

Ilene was born in the small town of Mancos, Colorado, in the Southwest part of the state, just
west of Durango. Her parents, Oscar and Thelma Hines, were parents of 8 children; 5 boys and
3 girls, including Aaron, Dean, Delbert, Marlin, Lonnie, Anita, Ilene and Dorene. Her father
graduated from Glad Tidings Bible College in 1930. He pastored at many different Assembly of
God churches in Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Montana and California. They were very strict
parents who believed that sparing the rod would spoil the child. Every meal was preceded by a
prayer, bordering on a sermon. All members of the family played instruments and sang very
well. Ilene thrived in this environment and continued to love God, take her family to church and
sing in the choir.

Sometime in 1952, when she was just 16, Ilene met Gene, the love of her life. He was recently
discharged from the US Air Force. Ilene and Eugene Smith (Gene) were married on October 5,
1952 in Farmington, New Mexico. Together they immediately started their family with Garland
(Dale), Randall (Kirk), Cheri, and Tami all being born in Farmington. Gene worked for his father
at a small Desoto car dealership and repair shop until the buildings burned to the ground one
day in 1960, while he had taken the family on a boating trip to Navaho Dam. They sent Garland
and Kirk to live in Sacramento with Gene’s parents while Gene dealt with the loss of the
dealership. In 1962, Gene and Ilene moved the family to Sacramento and started all over.
Gene worked as a car salesman at a new car dealership, while Ilene worked as a secretary at
another dealership in town. Their 5th child, James Smith (Jim) was born in Sacramento in 1968.

Gene and Ilene were married for a total of 58 years. They had 5 children, 13 grandchildren, and 20 great
grandchildren. Ilene became a grandmother at the young age of only 35, then a great grandmother at
the age of only 56. In spite of actively helping to raise all of her grandkids, she went back to
school to get her GED. Then she completed the nursing program at American River College in
1985, at the age of 49. Her first nursing job was in the Oncology Department at Mercy San Juan
Hospital in Carmichael. She loved helping people prepare to meet God. It is very likely that she
broke hospital rules against preaching to her patients.
Ilene’s life was defined by her love of God and Jesus, her family and music. She took her family
to the Carmichael Assembly of God Church during the 60’s and 70’s, then to Bethel Temple in
the 80’s and 90’s where she sang in the Singing Christmas Tree for many years. We will all
remember her as a loving sister, mother, grandmother and great grandmother who tried to
teach her family to believe in and love God.