BOXFORD – Mrs. Martha (Wilson) Smith, 85, of Boxford and the loving wife of the late Reid H. Smith, passed away peacefully with family by her side on Wednesday, January 15, 2025.

Born in Dover, Delaware, Martha was the daughter of the late Thomas and Jeannette (Krebs) Wilson. She was raised and educated in Wilmington, Delaware, where she attended Mount Pleasant High School. While in high school, Martha traveled to Germany as an exchange student for a semester. Martha's family also hosted exchange students from Germany and Greece, with whom she continued to stay in contact throughout her life. Following high school graduation, Martha continued her education at Penn State where she earned her bachelor's degree in Education and Home Economics.

Martha loved teaching students of many ages and in several subjects throughout her career. Over the years, she taught Home Economics, Biology, Health, and most notably, Child Development. The highlight of her career was her role as Child Development teacher at Ipswich High School from 1992 through 2005. She led her high school students in running a preschool for families in the Ipswich community. She loved to invest in older and younger students alike, teaching her subject well with attention to each individual.

Martha was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and loyal friend. She was a 30-year member of First Church Boxford where she enjoyed singing in the choir. Choral singing was a consistent joy throughout Martha's life, including her time in the Penn State choir and Chorus of the North Shore. She loved her trips to the Boston Symphony with friends. Above all else, Martha was a proud and devoted mother to her daughter Gail and tirelessly gave of herself both to Gail and the special needs community. She supported Gail in all of her schooling and job placement after high school. She cheered her through decades of Special Olympics and all of her many activities and endeavors. It was not unusual for Martha to be called "Mom" by other members of the special needs community who had lost parents or who lacked a consistent caregiver.

Given any time or opportunity, Martha loved to travel and hike in Colorado. She and Reid cherished many summer trips to be with her sister Julie and family to visit and hike multiple 14,000 foot peaks in the San Juan mountains.

Martha is survived by her daughters, Gail A. Wayne of Boxford and Meredith W. Irwin and her husband, Robert Christopher Irwin of Bishop, GA; her step-children, Donna Smith of New South Wales, Australia, Hess Smith of Los Angeles, CA and Charles H. Smith of Charlotte, NC; her 4 grandchildren, Norah Irwin, Luke Irwin, Madison Frith and Wilson Frith; Her sister, Julie Rothschild and her husband, Henry of Santa Fe, NM; and her 2 nephews, Charley and Robert Rothschild of Santa Fe, NM.

ARRANGEMENTS: A memorial service for Martha will be held at First Church Congregational Boxford, 4 Georgetown Road, Boxford on Saturday, March 15th at 1 PM. Private interment in Arlington National Cemetery. Assisting the family with the arrangements is O'Donnell Cremations – Funerals – Celebrations, 167 Maple St., (Rte. 62) DANVERS. To share a memory or offer a condolence, please visit www.odonnellfuneralservice.com.