Lisa Rai Smith, 66, of Oakville, died Saturday morning, Oct. 18, 2025, at the Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice House. She was born Feb. 1, 1959, in Burlington. She was the daughter of Cody W. Grooms and Benita A. Poffenbarger Grooms. In 1980, she married Mike Hardin; they later divorced. On Aug. 12, 1989, at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, she married John W. Smith.
Lisa graduated from Wapello High School, with the Class of 1977, and attended the Burlington Beauty Academy. Lisa worked for the American Ordnance Plant, Burlington Medical Center, Grimm Brothers Plastics, and Jack and Jill Grocery Store in Wapello. Upon her retirement, Lisa followed her dream to open and operate The Early Bird Food Truck.
Lisa kept busy with many hobbies, including keeping her hometown of Oakville looking beautiful all seasons of the year. She enjoyed gardening, both flowers – and vegetables – which she used for her blue ribbon-winning salsa recipe. Lisa looked forward to every chance to be outside, hunting mushrooms in the spring, fishing at the pond in the summer, and ice fishing in the winter. Hummingbirds were her favorite, except when it came to her grandchildren and great grandchildren. She cherished attending their sporting events and parades with them. Lisa shared her hobbies with everyone by capturing them through the eyes of her camera lens.
Survivors include her husband, John W. Smith; two daughters, Megan (Scott) Spurgeon of Keokuk, and Darcy Hardin of Mount Pleasant; one son, Nathan Smith of Kansas City, Mo. She will be missed by her special dog Holly; three grandchildren, Makayla (Jared) Oliver, Kaleb Spurgeon, and Makenna Spurgeon; two great grandchildren, Jenson and Aspen Oliver; her mother, Benita A. Grooms of Oakville; one brother, Scot (Marla) Grooms of Burlington; two sisters, Tanya (Raymond) Wigger of Napa, Calif. and Allison (Shawn) Alameda of Oakville; and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her father Cody, maternal and paternal grandparents, her father-in-law, and mother-in-law.
A graveside inurnment for Lisa Rai Smith will be 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in the Elmwood Cemetery, Morning Sun. A celebration of Lisa's life will be held at a later date.
Memorials have been established for the MidWest Dachshund Rescue and the Southeast Iowa Regional Hospice House. In lieu of sending flowers, friends are encouraged to plant native wildflowers to enjoy and attract hummingbirds of your own.