Christine Smithers

Christine (Tucker) Smithers, 88, of Camby, peacefully passed into the gates of heaven on February 1, 2022. She was born on April 3, 1933, in Taylor County, KY, one of six children, to the late Wilbur and Virgie Tucker. Raised in the hills and hollers of Kentucky, Christine alongside her siblings worked the tobacco fields in her youth. With a longing for a more prosperous life, she made the northern trek to Indiana as a young adult, finding love and starting her abundant family, including 11 children. When life together didn’t work out with her first husband, Christine rose to the challenge of single motherhood, taking the task by the reigns and mastering it. For a brief period, she secured employment with Diamond Chain in Indianapolis, but her true calling was being a devoted mother and grandmother; nurturing, loving, and tending to her large family’s needs. The rock of the household, she ensured all were fed. When the kids were grown, she met and married the man she would spend 38 glorious years with, Paul. He in turn tended to her needs, safeguarding her every want or necessity. Her guilty pleasures included finding deals at yard sales, watching her favorite televangelist Charles Stanley every Sunday, and pampering herself at the salon. Above all Christine held family high, and she utterly relished in spending quality time with her enormous and adoring circle. Fiery to the core and stubborn at times, she was resilient to the end. There will never be another matriarch that could give and receive love the way Christine did. She will be endlessly missed by all who were privileged to know her. Along with her parents, Christine was preceded in death by her husband Paul Smithers; siblings Alvis and Willie Gunter, Mary Lee Grivens, Nellie Southwood, and Susie; along with her children Linda McMaster, Geraldine Blair, Phyllis Leira, Carolyn Sifuentes, and Michael Gunter. She leaves behind her children Rosie Puttoff of Underwood, James Gunter (Anna Lou) of Morgantown, Robert Gunter (Elaine) of Monrovia, Joe Gunter (Laraine) of Mooresville, Ricky Gunter (Vicky) of Indianapolis, and Connie Smith (George) of Palm Bay, FL; along with 30 grandchildren and several great grandchildren. Friends and family are invited to gather for visitation from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., on Friday, February 4, 2022, at Light Memorial & Funeral Chapel in Monrovia, with a Celebration of Life Service beginning promptly at 6:00 p.m. Pastor Jerry Hillenburg will officiate, and a private burial will be held later in Floral Park Cemetery. To share a favorite story, send an online condolence to the family, or light a candle in Christine’s memory, please search @MonroviaFuneralHome on social media or visit her tribute page at www.lightmemorial.com.

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Christine Smithers

April 3, 1933 - February 1, 2022