Shirley Jane Smith Cothron

Shirley Jane Smith Cothron peacefully passed away on August 22, 2024, at the age of 87 while at home surrounded by her family. She was predeceased by her husband, Joe Cothron, her parents Eldon Smith and Ovie Gregory Smith, and her brother Lawrence Smith. She is survived by her two daughters Kelly Joyner (John Joyner) and Keri Jane Hall (Kevin Hall), her grandchildren Carrie Lawler (Brandon Lawler), Katie Sullivan, and Benjamin Hall, and her great-granddaughter Norah Jane Lawler.

Shirley's deep love was the foundation on which the family was built. She remained an active part of her daughters' lives even as they grew up, got married, and had children themselves, and helped raise her grandchildren to be just as hardworking as she. Her love of family and her deep interest in history is what spurred her into genealogy. She spent over a decade researching her ancestry and meticulously crafting her family tree, following the threads back centuries.

Shirley was married to her husband Joe for 60 years. Despite a brief courtship consisting only of one month, when Joe asked if she would like to combine finances as a way of proposing, Shirley, who was a personal banker, knew it was meant to be. Shirley worked for several banks in Nashville and Knoxville, TN, and in Cocoa, FL. Upon her move to Georgia with her family in 1975, after following Joe around the eastern seaboard for a few decades, she went to work for American Federal Savings and Loan on Mulberry St. in Macon. She stayed with them through their changes, eventually retiring from Wachovia.

The dedication she had for her daily job was then transferred to working on a horse farm with her daughter Keri. Until she was in her 80s, she would often be found sweeping barn aisles and wiping away pesky spiderwebs.

Shirley was not a lady who cussed or drank very much (a half a mimosa when her daughters made them), but she was a force to be reckoned with. At 5'1" and barely a minute she was still the matriarch of the family and Joe Cothron knew it.

She will be desperately missed by her family and all who knew her.

A funeral service will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 25, 2024, at Hart’s Mortuary on Cherry Street, with the Reverend Bruce Brookshire officiating.  The family will greet friends one hour prior to the service.  Burial will be private at Riverside Cemetery.

Please visit www.hartsmort.com to express condolences.

Hart’s on Cherry Street, Hart's Mortuary and Cremation Center, 765 Cherry Street, Macon, GA 31201 has charge of the arrangements.