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Timothy was born on July 31, 1949, to Howard and Lucile (Peters) Smith in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He graduated from Washington High School in 1967.
While attending high school he formed his first band The King Bees. He had a love for music and writing songs, and he excelled at playing the guitar. In 1974 he joined a group called Lanny Scott and the Country Spoon, which later became The Blue Sky Band. Together with his brother, Phil Smith, Tim (Woody as he was known) led The Blue Sky Band to become one of Central Iowa’s most popular and loved country bands of the 1980’s, playing house band gigs at The Nashville Club in Des Moines and The Distillery in Ankeny.
On May 6th, 1990, Timothy married Susan Coffman. The two of them formed a partnership in love, life and business. Together they have owned and operated The Exchange, an advertising paper based in Winterset, since 1994.
Tim “Woody” is survived by his wife of 20 years, Sue. His children, Jessie Pattrin (Tim) of Elbow Lake, MN, Kate Vance (Andy) of Bloomington, IL, Jake, Henry, and Addie Smith of Winterset, IA; his mother, Lu Smith of Cedar Rapids, IA; brother, Phil Smith (Mary) of Elkhart, IA; two sisters, Lisa Jacobson (Roger) of Smithsville, KY and Joanna Smith-Dromey (Stu) of Cedar Rapids, IA; father and mother-in-law, Ed and Gayla Coffman; and sister and brother-in-law, Connie and Bruce Allen; a brother-in-law, Kent Coffman; and his nieces and nephews who he loved so much: Amanda (Tim), Brody, Bennett, Robbie, Katie, Jocey, Ben and Carl; and his grandchildren he was so proud of, Mikenna, Kaytlyn, Ava, Austin, and Tanner.
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Dennis K. Dochterman
Tim Smith and I first met at Franklin Junior High School through our mutual friend Clay Fulkerson. Once when Tim got in trouble at school for his curly,thick,longish hair,he asked me to try to cut it for him, complaining that all the local barbers he went to would just shave his head...Thus I learned the basics of barbering. By 1964 Tim was learning to play a nylon six string guitar, which he took very seriously. Sometime around 1965 or 1966 Tim and his friend Russ Collins got the idea of starting a new rock group to play at WHS dances and other local venues. Russ was a skilled musician and had a great new Gibson electric bass.Tim electrifed his old nylon guitar,and then moved up to a Sivertone electric solid body. Next he owned and became proficient on a new Gibson twelve-string hollow body with electric pickup. Influenced by the style of George Harrison,Tim much admired country music. Later as Tim progressed, he purchased his treasured Gretsch Country Gentleman hollow-body electric guitar. Russ knew the work of Bo Diddley and many other Black Rhythm And Blues legends, which greatly influenced the new band's style. Though I have little or no musical skill, Tim knew I liked to sing, after we had been fooling around with an old tape recorder in his parent's basement on Upland Drive. Tim took a chance and invited me to sing with his new group. I sort of learned to play harmonica and bought a tamborine. Tim, Russ and I practiced singing three-part harmony based on the songs of the Beatles and British Invasion bands of the period. Tim carefully auditioned and selected talented WHS musicians, including Tad Lipsky and Henry Nathanson,to play lead guitar and percussion in the new band. We decided to name the band "THE KINGBEES" after a classic Slim Harpo song by that title. This was Tim's first band. During our high school years Tim confided in me that he would "never work a regular job"... He said he planned to become a professional musician. Tim was mostly self taught but could skillfully read, compose and arrange music. In 1974 Tim and his younger brother Phil joined an Iowa group called "LANNY SCOTT AND THE COUNTRY SPOON", which later became "THE BLUE SKY BAND". The Blue Sky became one of Iowa's most popular country Bluegrass bands of the 1980's. They played house gigs at The Nashville Club in Des Moines,The Distillery in Ankeny, and many other regional venues. Somewhere along the line Tim acquired the nickname "Woodie". Tim married Susan Coffman in 1990. Together they operated a small advertiser newspaper publishing house called The Exchange, in Winterset, Iowa. Tim was married 20 years and raised 5 children. Tim died of lung cancer, in Winterset, Iowa on August 20, 2010 at age 61. Back in high school, when Tim was in a bouyant mood, he'd sing a few bars from that 1926 Irving Berlin tune; "Blue skies, smilin'at me. Nothin' but blue skies do I see..."
Deborah Nye (Nye)
Dennis: Thanks for such a lovely re-cap of Tim's life.
I adored Tim and we were close friends the last couple of years in high school. I used to hang out with the King Bees, who included Henry Nathanson as their drummer, and in fact published a poem inspired by them in one of our high school literary journals. Tim and I lived a few blocks apart and would visit back and forth, and then we'd hang out with his girl friend or my boyfriend as couples. But it is the one-on-one visits I most remember when we explored every topic under the sun, each of us having a somewhat critical and perhaps cynical mind and challenging each other to go deeper into the topics we covered. He educated me on many topics, especially the male psyche, and I think felt challenged by me as well. There was strong connection and a deep friendship. It lasted through long letters into early college after which we went our separate ways. His mom moved and I never knew how to find him again, though I tried. One of my deepest regrets is that I didn't see him at the second to the last reunion we had, when he showed up and I didn't. Henry tells me that the King Bees had a good reunion talk and I wish I had been there to see Dennis and Russ and Tim and Henry together again.
Susan Heuer (Bazelides)
Lachlan Ross
I remember doing Tim's paper route at the Commomwealth Apartments. Then at times he would send me on my own so he could see his girlfriend.