Thomas Larry Smith peacefully passed away in the arms of his wife, Melinda Walton, on October 1, 2017. Born in Houston, Texas, on February 24, 1948, Larry was the son of Sylvan Anthony Smith and Margaret Elliott Smith.

Larry and his family moved from Texas to New Orleans, Louisiana in 1959. He graduated from Behrman High School in 1966 and pursued his Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of Southwestern Louisiana in Lafayette. Larry majored in painting and ceramics and received his BA in 1971. Shortly after graduation and dating for only two weeks, Larry married Melinda Walton, also an art major, and the couple moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Larry had a teaching assistantship in the Ceramics Department at LSU and received his Masters in Fine Arts from there in 1973. The couple spent the next two years in Norwood, Louisiana, opening Smith Pottery. Realizing that they would starve to death if they stayed in that business, the couple moved to Lafayette, Louisiana. Larry started working as an oil and gas landman/broker and Melinda started an interior design business. They stayed in the Lafayette area for several years until deciding that they wanted to move around the United States. They lived in Boulder, Colorado; Pensacola, Florida; Birmingham, Alabama; Nashville, Tennessee; Houston, Hempstead and Kenney, Texas; and Santa Fe, New Mexico. In the year 2000, while living on their farm in Hempstead, Texas, Larry and Melinda began breeding and raising German warmblood horses for the sport of dressage. In 2010, they moved their herd to the beautiful hunt country of northern Virginia. In Virginia, they enjoyed going to dressage competitions to watch their "kids" compete and win with professional riders and the amateur riders who had purchased their homebreds. Nothing was more exciting to them than watching a new foal come into the world and then develop it into a solid citizen in equestrian circles. It was their passion.

Larry is survived by his wife of over 46 years, Melinda Walton of Philomont, Virginia, his mother, Margaret Elliott Smith of Onalaska, Texas, his sister, Sherry Franovich of New Braunfels, Texas, his brother Michael A. Smith and wife Terri of Onalaska, Texas, his niece, Stacy Gipson of New Braunfels, Texas, his nephew, Louis Austin Walton of New Orleans, Louisiana and his nephew, Michael A. Smith, Jr. and wife Haley of Cypress, Texas. Larry is also survived by his sisters-in-law, Connie and Jackie Walton of The Plains, Virginia, and brother-in-law, Jerry L. Walton and wife Cindy of Lafayette, Louisiana, his four godchildren, Christopher Whitcraft Murphy of Florence, Italy, Magnus Ferguson and James Ferguson III, both of New York City and Signe Ferguson of Providence, Rhode Island, and twelve great nieces and nephews. His favorite dog, Tulip the Terrible, is keeping a vigilant watch for him.

The family wishes to thank the many friends and neighbors who have helped during his illness and especially Pam and Ed Murphy of West Chester, Pennsylvania, for constantly being at Larry and Melinda's side and Mary Ann McGowan of Bluemont, Virginia, for her never ending supply of Larry's favorite macaroni and cheese. We'd also like to extend thanks to the Virginia Cancer Center and Vitas Hospice for the kind and caring service they rendered.

A memorial service will be held at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Middleburg, Virginia on October 14, 2017 at 2:00 P.M.   There will be a reception following the service at Connie Walton's Cloverland Farm in The Plains, Virginia.