Vera Katherine Smith passed away in her sleep on the morning of March 15 due to chronic pulmonary failure. She was 94 years old.
Vera was born in Indiana and moved to California when she was young. Vera first lived in Big Bear, San Diego, Woodland Hills and Topanga until she settled in Malibu with her husband, who she married in 1936, and three children in 1964.
Vera lived in the same home in the upper Big Rock area for almost 50 years. During that period, she and her family survived the fires and storms that have been a big part of Malibu’s history.
The couple became active at Our Lady of Malibu, where their daughters attended elementary school. They grew gardens and planted fruit trees on the hillside, kept ponies and horses for their daughters to explore the Santa Monica mountains, and enjoyed the rural life of Malibu at that time.
Vera and her husband bought apartment buildings along the beach and developed a small rental business that she managed for 25 years after her husband’s passing in 1986.
“She was known to many as their landlady, and to all as their friend,” a loved one said.
Vera never wanted to leave Malibu, but, for health reasons and to be closer to her family, she moved from her home three years ago to Rancho Santa Fe.
Vera was preceded in death by her husband, Dean Smith. She is survived by her three daughters, Rosalie (who lives in Leona Valley), Laurie and Sharalyn (who both live in Encinitas) and one son, Robert Smith (of Malibu). She is also survived by five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. Burial will be at sea off Point Loma.