On behalf of me and my wife Chaitra, my brother David Darnell Harris and my sister Mara Lamont Hoskin Wright, it is with a deep sense of loss to announce that our mother, the indomitable Juanita Smith, was called home on Sunday morning. While this is a time of sadness for us and everyone who knew her, particularly her “surrogate” children from Operation HOPE - Rachael Doff and Sirjames Buchanon - we can take solace in the fact that she has been promoted to a higher place and is now free from the anxieties of this world.

Everything I am today, I owe to my mother.

Everyone who knew her, even briefly, can vouch for why. She was a spirited, determined force, whose wisdom was far more impactful than any formal education I ever received. I have had an abundance of blessings in my life, but the greatest one was being born her son. She brought me into this world and I was there, holding her hand, when she walked out.

That’s love!