After a 26-year battle with an autoimmune blood disorder, Ada Sue (Bland) Ray-Smith, age 85, of Conway, passed away in the early morning hours at the Hospice Homecare facility in Little Rock on December 1, 2018.

Ada Sue was born in Yell County, Arkansas to the late Lewis and Alice (Dow) Bland. She graduated from Danville High School in 1951 then attended Arkansas Tech and State Teacher's College where she majored in elementary and home economics education. She spent over 30 years in the classroom teaching students from first through twelfth grades. Before beginning her teaching career, she briefly worked as a certified cytotechnologist in Memphis, Tennessee at Baptist and St. Joseph's Hospitals. She was a most recently a member of Calvary Baptist Church in Dardanelle but attended the Danville Methodist Church throughout her childhood and adolescence.

She leaves behind her kitty cat, Radar Smith of Conway; daughter, Lisa (Ray) Carmack of Conway, her grandchildren, Meagan (Daniel Horned) Carmack of Springfield, MO and Abigail Carmack and Brad Wickliffe of Conway; a sister, Rose Mae Bland (Tony) Toenjes of Cuero, TX; nieces Kathy Bearden (Jerry) of Log Cabin, Texas, Dorothy Mayer (Steve) of Cameron, TX; Betty Johnson (Johnny) of Concord, VA; Connie Luster of Poplar Bluff, MO; Pat Frederick of Havana; Debbie Phillips of Danville, and nephews Kenny Smith (Rita) of Nacogdoches, TX; Joe Garrett, Jr. of Memphis, TN, and many special cousins, relatives, and close friends.

Ada Sue was preceded in death by her first husband, Ernest A. Ray, Jr. in 2000 and her second husband, Harold Smith in 2015; her parents Lewis and Alice (Dow) Bland; grandparents Jerome and Ada Dow; Grant and Susan Bland; uncles and aunts Lloyd and Luna Bland, Leonard and Amelia Bland, Opal and Gracie (Bland) Brewer, Archie and Lawana Dow, Roy and Ethelyn Dow, and Esther (Dow) and Cleo Smith, all of Yell County, her niece Carol Smith of Mena, son-in-law, Patrick Carmack, as well as numerous first cousins and other relatives.

Ada Sue loved spending time with her family. She adored her grandchildren and said they were the best gift she had ever received. She also enjoyed all of God's creatures and spent many happy hours drinking her morning coffee and taking in the beautiful sights of her flower garden, birds, and other small critters in the backyard. Throughout her life, she took care of family members and was a regular visitor to local nursing homes.

A brief memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. at the Danville United Methodist Church on Saturday, December 8 ^th . She is interred at the Havana Cemetery. As an option to sending flowers, memorial gifts may also be made to either the ASPCA ( www.aspca.org ) or to the Platelet Disorder Support Association ( www.pdsa.org ).

Arrangements by Cornwell Funeral Home Danville Online guestbook and condolence at www.cornwellfuneralhomes.com