John Henry Smith (September 11, 1939 – June 2, 2012) was the sixth bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia The Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (TEC). It encompasses all 55 counties of West Virginia. The diocese has 66 congregations, including 38 parishes, 26 missions, and 2 other c ...

Early life and education

Born and raised in the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

, Smith graduated from Balboa High School and later

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

. In 1964, he graduated from the

General Theological Seminary The General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church (GTS) is an Episcopal seminary in New York City. Founded in 1817, GTS is the oldest seminary of the Episcopal Church and the longest continuously operating Seminary in the Anglican Communi ...

, and he married his wife, the former Victoria Dawley. Rev. Smith also earned a Doctor of Ministry degree from Hartford Seminary in 1980, and received honorary degrees from his GTS alma mater as well as from the Virginia Theological Seminary. The Smiths owned a summer camp in

North Waterford, Maine North Waterford is a village in the town of Waterford in Oxford County, Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, an ...

from 1970 until his death.

Ministry

Ordained in 1965, Rev. Smith served parishes in Falmouth,

Skowhegan Skowhegan () is the county seat of Somerset County, Maine. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 8,620. Every August, Skowhegan hosts the annual Skowhegan State Fair, the oldest continuously-held state fair in the United States. Skowh ...

and

Palmyra, Maine Palmyra is a town in Somerset County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,924 at the 2020 census. History Palmyra was incorporated in 1807. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which ...

, and became a champion of joint ministries for small parishes. He then taught and served as chaplain at the

National Cathedral School National Cathedral School (NCS) is an independent Episcopal private day school for girls in grades 4–12 located on the grounds of the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by philanthropist and suffragist Phoe ...

in Washington, D.C. When elected bishop of the

in 1989, Rev. Smith had been serving for a decade in Vermont, in Middlebury and at Trinity Episcopal Church in

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

. Presiding bishop

Edmund L. Browning Edmond Lee Browning (March 11, 1929 – July 11, 2016) was an American bishop. He was the 24th presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Education, ordination, early ministry Browning received his s ...

led the consecration service for the 841st bishop of the Episcopal Church, assisted by bishop

William G. Weinhauer William Gillette Weinhauer (December 3, 1924 – January 26, 2007) was fourth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina from March 1975 to January 1990. Early life and education Weinhauer was born on December 3, 1924, in New York ...

of Western North Carolina and James R. Moodey of Ohio. In 1996, Smith wrote ''Cluster Ministry: A faithful response'', a fourth edition of which the Diocese of West Virginia published in 2000. Rt.Rev. Smith retired from the diocese of West Virginia upon reaching age 60 in 1999. At the time of his retirement, the diocese had 78 parishes organized in 11 clusters. He moved with his wife to Brunswick, Maine in 2003. From 2006 to 2010, Smith served as priest-in-charge at St. Peter's Episcopal Church in

Bridgton, Maine Bridgton is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,418 at the 2020 census. A resort area in Maine's Lakes Region, Bridgton is home to Bridgton Academy, a private preparatory school, and the Four on the Fourth Roa ...

, which he helped build.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, John H. 1939 births 2012 deaths Cornell University alumni Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia People from Falmouth, Maine General Theological Seminary alumni 20th-century Anglican bishops in the United States Bishops in West Virginia People from Skowhegan, Maine People from Palmyra, Maine Episcopal bishops of West Virginia