"Leslie &Family so sorry to hear of the loss of Brian he was a great neighbor &will be missed"
In loving memory of
Brian James Smith
October 10, 1944 - December 7, 2020
Brian Smith, age 76, of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, passed away peacefully in his sleep on December 7, 2020. Brian was born in Worcester, MA to Bernard and Vivian Smith, and grew up in Shrewsbury. Brian married Leslie (Goguen) Smith of New Bedford, MA on August 29, 1969 in Long Beach, CA. They celebrated their 50th anniversary last summer with friends and family.
Brian served in the US Navy during the Vietnam war on the USS Brooke. After his service, he completed an Electrical Engineering degree at South Eastern Massachusetts University (UMass, Dartmouth), and returned to working for the Navy, as a contractor "downtown" (near DC). In 1977, he moved back to New England for good, for a job as an engineer at TRICCSMA (later merged into the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Newport), settling into the home where he and Leslie raised their family. He had a 30 year career working on US Navy submarine combat systems, early on as a test engineer and later in management, retiring in 2009.
Outside of work, Brian volunteered in his community, as a coach in Little League (before having kids of his own), Cubmaster of Pack 1 and later Scoutmaster of Troop 1 Portsmouth, president of the Portsmouth Music Boosters, member of the town zoning board, and as a poll worker. Until recently, in the winter he could often be found using his trusty snow blower to clear out the neighbors' driveways.
Brian always did what he believed was the right thing to do, and raised his sons to do the same.
Brian is survived by his wife, Leslie, his children, Colin Smith and his wife, Mary, and Matthew Smith. He will also be missed by his grandchildren, Susan and Leo Smith, his sister, Joyce Deprospo and his sister-in-law, Patricia Spaeth.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Bernard and Vivian Smith.
Due to current restrictions, services for Mr. Smith will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his name to your local food bank.
Tributes
"I am so sorry to hear about the loss of Scoutmaster Smith. He was a great leader, and role model for me and my two older brothers, as well as all of my Troopmates. I feel lucky to have known such an affable, fun loving, and generous man. He helped generate some awesome memories and lasting lessons. My thoughts and prayers are with his loving family. - Conor Collins"
"I am truly sorry for your loss of Brian. He was a good friend and comrade as our paths crossed in NUWC, Little League, and as a retired Geezer. We often talked about events about Little League and our common issues regarding our hearts. Over the last few years he and I would track down NUWC retirees who were sick , visit them, and give them a bit of joy. Brian was kind to all, funny at most times and conscientious about his work. He had a keen insight to technical issues and would always do the 'right thing' as Deputy Submarine Combat Systems Department Head at NUWC. I will miss his smiling face and comments at our Geezers' breakfasts. My prayers are with you all. Denis Coffey"
"Leslie, Colin & Matt, I recently saw Brian and know he was going through a tough time. I am glad he is at peace. He was an awesome person and great Scoutmaster to my 3 Eagle sons, Corey, Conor & Michael. I will always appreciate the many kindnesses he showed and the hard work he put in to helping my sons have a great safe venue to grow into young men. He made them better and gave all of my family a place to help our kids learn to safely navigate the world. Lots of smiles and great memories.......Yawgoog, Paul Siple, The Swamp, Factors Club, Klondike Derbies, Melville Campground, Fogarty, numerous Eagle projects, letting the kids lead and develop their own leadership skills and style... Letting the kids become young men, gently correcting overzealous Dads..... Brian was a Scoutmaster's scoutmaster and I was honored to be one of his assistants. He will be missed. I pray that God comforts you all during this difficult time. Charley Collins"
"Please accept our deepest sympathy on the loss of your husband, Brian. Dr. Frazier, Karen, and Carol."
"Leslie, Colin and Matt, I am so deeply saddened and heartbroken about the passing of Brian, he was such a wonderful man and always so kind and humorous. I remember when I first met your family, you were all so awesome and made me feel that I was part of the family. I will never forget that and all of the fond memories of Brian. He will be sorely missed, but will always be in our hearts. Love, David"
"Matt, I am so sorry about the loss of your father. Please know that your GDMS friends are thinking about you and your family. "
"We are incredibly sorry and heartbroken over the loss of Uncle Brian. He meant the world to me and I?m grateful for the many wonderful memories I have of him. He valued his family and was quick to make me laugh...a truly winning combination that I dearly loved and appreciated. "
"Brian was an important part of the NUWC community both while working and in retirement. He gave of his time selfishly to help his fellow workers and will be sorely missed."
"Pete Santiago, Deeply saddened to hear of Brian\'s passing. I had the pleasure of knowing him and working with him at NUWC over the years. I found him to be a generous and fair-minded professional in all his dealings with those he supervised. Providing me meaningful and expert advice in the set-up of security and related Naval radio communications systems. My sincerest condolences to his loving family. May he forever rest in peace. He was a good man and will be missed at our monthly NUWC breakfasts meeting of retirees where we exchanged stories and memories of days of yore."
"Brian was a good man and a great shipmate. I served with Brian on the USS Brooke (DEG-1) from 65 - 67. When I was assigned to the USS Michigan (SSBN727), I again ran into Brian at TRICCSMA NUWC Newport for the certification of the Radio Room in the early 80\'s. We attended Brooke reunions together, I will never forget the one in New Orleans. Please accept my sincere condolences, thoughts and prayers. He will be missed. Rest your oar shipmate, we have the watch. Rest in Peace."
"Aunt Leslie, Colin and Matt, I?m so sorry about Uncle Brian. We were so lucky to have him as our uncle and I?m fortunate to have so many great memories of him over the years. I?m grateful that our small family stayed so close and got to spend so many holidays and family events together mostly at your house ? those are my favorite memories of Uncle Brian. I?ll always appreciate the many things he did for our family after Grampa, Nana and Dad passed away, especially taking care of Nana and all the time he spent helping out my Mom when she moved back here to New Bedford. Uncle Brian was such a great guy and will be missed by so many people. My thoughts, prayers and a lot of love are with all of you. Chad"
"I am saddened to hear of Brian\'s passing. Brian was instrumental in spearheading my hiring as a government employee. I never forgot that. He also never forgot \"from whence he came\". This is what endeared him to his followers. He was always there to listen, if you had a problem, or just needed to laugh. My wife and I send our sincerest condolences to his wife, Leslie and the entire Smith clan. May you RIP, Brian, you will be missed Blessings Steve and Sandy Ouellette"
"So sorry to hear about Brian. We sure enjoyed our visits with Les and Brian. When Mark ran the Boston Marathon in 2008 we were able to get together and have dinner and visit. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family. Rest In Peace Brian?? Thinking of you all, Mark and Rachel Owens"
"Bill Blackburn I worked for Brian. He was a great man. I am so sorry for your loss. "
"Dear Leslie Ann and family, Ellen and I were so sad to hear of Brian?s passing. You are all in our thoughts and prayers. I have Brian to thank for having the career that I had. Brian was working in Wheaton, Maryland and knew that I was looking to be a police officer and not having much luck in Mass. where I lived. Brian sent me an application for the county police department that covered Wheaton and less than a year later I was hired and got to live my dream. Further while I was in the academy Brian and Leslie would invite me up to house outside Baltimore on weekends so that I didn?t hav to eat TV dinners 7 days a week. They were both lifesavers to their cousin. Rest In Peace Brian, I will never forget what you and Leslie Ann did for me. Les Marsh"
"Dear Leslie and family, so sorry for your loss. I worked under Brian publishing the TRICCMA Fleet Newsletter and the library. He was such a wonderful boss. You will all be in my prayers."