Janet Leonard Smith

Janet Leonard Smith, a longtime resident of Hingham, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family on Tuesday, December 26, 2023.  She was 92.

Jan was born in Johnson City, NY to Dorothy (Waterman) and Clarence Leonard and raised in Johnson City, NY.  After high school, Janet attended Albany State University and earned her bachelor’s degree.  She later earned her master’s in education from Bridgewater State University.

Janet met the love of her life, Eugene Smith, while competing in a horse-riding competition.  She competed in trick riding, and he competed in barrel racing.  His horse was unable to compete, so he asked to ride hers and the rest was history. Eugene enlisted in the US Army and was stationed in Germany shortly after the two were married.  They packed up everything they owned and moved to Germany, where Janet taught for two years on the Army base before the two moved back to the U.S.

Once they settled in Hingham, she became very active in the town.  She and Gene opened a fabric and yarn store in downtown Hingham which she passionately worked at for many years. Jan took great pride in being a business woman and owner of The Calico Cat for many years.  She was the past President of the Hingham Merchants Association and was the originator of the summer sidewalk sales!   

Teaching was Janet’s life!    It was one of her greatest passions, second only to her family.  She was a teacher for over 35 years in the town of Weymouth.  Her impact on the Weymouth Public School System and the Weymouth High Theater was truly profound.  She was so proud of the work she did over the years and the many lives she shaped in her time as a teacher and drama coach. Many of her students have gone on in the field.   The Weymouth High School stage is named after Jan—a true honor and one she was very proud of.

In her spare time, she was a part of the Young at Heart Theater, a local community theater group based out of Hingham.  Her greatest joy, however, always came from time spent with her family.  She brought farm living to the suburbs of Hingham, owning chickens, horses, many rabbits, dogs, cats, a pig and a very cocky rooster.

Janet was truly one of a kind and an amazing influence on so many people, whether they be family, students or friends.  She will be dearly missed by all who knew her.

Beloved wife of 59 years to the late Eugene D. Smith.  Devoted mother to Heather Vaughan Smith and her wife Kate of Hingham, Janene S. Burke and her husband Bill of Hingham, Sydnee S. Holmes and her husband Scott of Scituate and David L. Smith of St Paul, MN.  Cherished grandmother to Grace, Jessica, Kelly, Cassie, Kristen, Ashley and Brittany.  Loving great-grandmother to Will, Aly, Lyni, DJ, Connor, Cooper, Camryn, Salote, Ami and Noa.

Jan, or Darling as she became in the recent years, was predeceased by her twin sister, Joyce Bolas, her brother, Carl Leonard and her parents, Dorothy and Clarence Leonard.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to greet the family during the visiting hours on Wednesday, January 3rd, from 4-7 PM in the Pyne Keohane Funeral Home, 21 Emerald St. (off Central St.), Hingham. Funeral service will be celebrated on Thursday, January 4th at 11 AM in First Trinitarian Congregational Church, Scituate. Burial in High Street Cemetery, Hingham.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Janet’s name to the Weymouth High Theater Company, 1 Wildcat Way, Weymouth, MA, 02190 or to the Alzheimer’s Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave. Floor 17 Chicago, IL 60601