Julia Hanlin Smith, age 76, of Murphy, Texas, peacefully went home to be with our Lord, Jesus Christ, July 9, 2011, in Dallas, Texas. Julia was born October 2, 1934, in Birmingham, Alabama, to William Arthur and Katherine (Hale) Hanlin. Julia graduated from Hewitt High School in Trussville, Alabama and then went to college at Howard College which later became Samford University. She later transferred to Auburn University where she earned a bachelor’s degree and pursued graduate work in home economics. Julia worked as a home economist for Oklahoma Natural Gas in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was responsible for teaching, training and demonstrating how to effectively use gas appliances and hosted a cooking show on local public television. It was in Tulsa where she met the love of her life, James Porter Smith, to whom she was married for almost 53 years. As a Christian, Julia was a Proverbs 31 woman; she loved, care and nurtured those that God put in her path. Never meeting a stranger, she was always open to lending a hand, creating a humorous moment, helping financially, or sharing knowledge, whether they wanted it or not. Combining her love for people, a heart for spreading the gospel, a managerial drive, and her education, she was well positioned to be a successful domestic engineer, wonderful wife, loving mother, and comforting grandmother with an on demand firecracker attitude. She raised 3 children, invested in the lives of 5 grandchildren and loved 21 grand-animals. An adventurer at heart, she was a true Renaissance woman and an accomplished “stuff-ologist”! No rock went untouched! Her pursuits included private pilot training, musician and lover of music, art collector, dog musher, Alaskan ambassador and many others. Her choice was to live life to the fullest. She is survived by her husband, Jim Smith of Murphy, Texas; children, Kathy Crabtree and husband, Jeff of Ft. Collins, Colorado, Kevin D. Smith and wife, Christi Ann of Tampa, Florida, and Michael Smith and wife, Melissa McMahan of Dallas, Texas; grandchildren, Kyle Crabtree, Kristin Crabtree, Nathanael Crabtree, Hanlin Smith, and Laine Smith; and a host of other loving family and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 am, on July 15th, 2011, at First Baptist Church in Plano, Texas with Dr. Jerry Carlisle officiating. Interment will follow at Ridgeview Memorial Park in Allen, Texas. Family and friends are invited to the funeral home, at their convenience on Thursday, to pay their respects and to sign the register book. The family will receive friends during a visitation on Thursday evening beginning at 6:30 pm. Donations in honor of Julia Hanlin Smith may be made to First Baptist Church of Plano, 1300 E. 15th St., Plano, Texas, 75074-6296, 972-424-8551.