Carol Jean Smith's Obituary
Carol Jean (Hopper) Smith, age 78, of Ventura, CA passed away December 11, 2018, in Ventura, CA.
Mom was born Carol Jean Hopper on December 12, 1939, in a farm house in Cloverdale, KS. She later moved to a farm in Moline, KS with her parents and sisters, and attended Moline High School, graduating in the class of 1957. After moving to the big city of Wichita in 1961, she met future husband Ed Bentley. Two kids (Dana and Jay) were born, and four years later the family moved to Saugus, California. Carol moved reluctantly, but the move to the warmer climate gradually grew on her. In 1976, Carol and the kids made another move to Woodland Hills, after a second marriage, where she stayed for the next 40 years.
Carol loved dancing and would dance with her friends whenever she could, but her love of the farm and love of the land never left her. She loved to garden and her front yard was always her pride and joy. Carol was also a good cook, and made amazing mid-western food. The family joke of how she stayed so thin was that the food was gone by the time she sat down at the table to eat.
Carol moved to Ventura in 2014, when she moved into the Ventura Townehouse. There she made some wonderful friends and enjoyed the camaraderie as well as the incredible ocean/Channel Island view.
Carol leaves behind daughter Dana Bentley and husband Tom Murphy, son Jay Bentley and wife Natalia Fabia, grandchildren Miles, Hunter and Peribeau, sisters JoAn (Bill), Barbara (Bob), Wanda (Charles), and many nieces and nephews.
Dana and Jay would like to thank the Ventura Townehouse and Coastal View Skilled Nursing for taking such good care of mom. We could not have asked for better people to a part of our village.
Graveside service will be held at 11:00 am, Saturday, December 22, 2018 at Green Lawn Cemetery, Grenola, Kansas.
Online condolences can be left at: www.countrysidefh.com
Services have been entrusted to:
Countryside Funeral Home, 206 E. Washington – P.O. Box 1233, Howard, KS 67349.
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