FLO ARCURI
SPRINGFIELD, Va. - Cynthia Florence "Flo" Smith Arcuri went to be with the Lord on June 5, 2004, after a lengthy and courageous battle with congestive heart failure.
Flo was born on February 3, 1923 in Wayne County, N.C., to Sally Pipkin and Herman Moses Smith. She graduated from Grantham High School in 1939, the valedictorian of her class of 25. She attended Western Carolina Teachers College in Cullowhee, N.C., for three years before leaving to go to work in Washington, D.C., for the federal government. In 1943, she returned to Goldsboro, N.C., where she met and married John "Johnny" Francis Arcuri who was serving in the U.S. Air Force. Flo and Johnny traveled extensively over the next 20 years during Johnny's service in the military, retiring in Springfield, Va., in 1965.
After Johnny's retirement and continuing after his untimely death in 1970, Flo became active in Springfield community life: She was a member of Meals on Wheels, an enthusiastic member of Sweet Adelines (Potomac Harmony Chapter) for 27 years, and a member of Grace Presbyterian Church for 33 years, serving as chairperson of Congregational Care for 30 of those years.
Her family and friends remember Flo as a gifted seamstress, a wonderful cook (famous for her pies), an avid reader, and a crossword puzzle aficionado! She also loved to play bridge with her girlfriends and to work in her garden. She was a self-taught musician and sang in the church choir wherever she lived. And she was a true optimist, seeing the best in everyone and every situation. She will be missed and loved and remembered always by those who knew her.
In addition to her parents, Flo was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Johnny; an infant sister, Sadie Eleanora Smith, and her dear sister, Grace Joseph Romanus of Goldsboro.
Left to celebrate her life and cherish her memory are her three daughters, Cynthia Thacker and her husband, John, of Charlottesville, Va.; Patricia Arcuri and her husband, George Thomas Harrison III, of Weaverville, N.C.; and Nancy Arcuri of Baltimore, Md.; brother, Wilbur "Smitty" James Smith and his wife, Consuelo, of San Antonio, Texas, and their children, Barbara Ann, Dennis James, and Nancy; a niece, Barbara Phillips and her husband, David, of Kinston, N.C., and their children, Cameron, Garret and Grayson; a nephew, George Joseph Jr. and his wife, Jackie, of Goldsboro, N.C.; sisters-in law, Alveta Arcuri and Phyllis Arcuri, and brother-in-law Reno Arcuri of Fairmont, W.Va.; seven grandchildren, Christopher John Thacker, Jennifer Lynne Thacker Villalobos and her husband, Luis, Antonio Joaquin Thacker, Wilfredo Rodriquez Thacker, Armando Salazar Thacker, Rodolfo Vargas Salvatierra; a step-granddaughter, Laura Harrison and her husband, Marty Steinberg, of East Brunswick, N.J.; a special college friend, Elizabeth O'Berry of Dudley, N.C.; a special family friend, Dave Field of Springfield, Va.; and many other nieces, nephews, and friends too numerous to mention.
A memorial service was held on June 12 at Grace Presbyterian Church in Springfield, Va.
The funeral service will be held on Friday, July 2, at 12:30 p.m. at Demaine Funeral Chapel, 5308 Backlick Road, Springfield, Va., 22151, and the family will receive friends at Demaine for one hour prior to the service. Following the service, burial will take place at Arlington National Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to: Mission of Hope Bolivia, P.O. Box 4001, Charlottesville, Va. 22903; or to Grace Presbyterian Church, 7434 Bath Street, Springfield, Va. 22150.
(Written & Paid by the Family)
Published in Obituaries on June 27, 2004 10:17 AM