Joe T. Smith

Longtime Alaskan resident Joe T. Smith, 83, passed away Wednesday, May 19, 2021 at Central Peninsula Hospital with his daughter by his side. Joe was born Nov. 27, 1937 in Guthrie, Okla. After graduating from Brighton High School in Colorado in 1956, he joined the Navy, serving four years. While in the Navy, Joe was a Machinist 3rd Class on both the USS Myles C. Fox and USS Arcadia. Joe worked as a roustabout on Texas oilrigs before moving his family to Alaska in 1967. He was an oilfield worker who spent much of his career as a utility man and crane operator on the Monopod Platform. Joe survived the 1989 explosion on the Monopod, leaving him suffering from second and third degree burns over more than a quarter of his body. He loved Alaska and spent his off time exploring it with his daughter. He spent his retirement helping raise his grandsons and took special delight in meeting his great-grandson. Joe is survived by his daughter, Shannon Smith; grandsons, Bailey and Noah Deutsch; and great-grandson, Kamden Deutsch. After cremation, his ashes will be scattered throughout Hatcher’s Pass. Arrangement were by Peninsula Memorial Chapel.