Ken Smith, one of just three people in modern times to serve as both Kissimmee mayor and Osceola County Commission chairman, died Saturday night at age 79 after a bout with an illness.
Smith, a devout follower of his faith, and the Florida State Seminoles, is survived by his wife of 48 years, Jennifer.
Visitation will be held on Monday, Oct. 17 from 5-7 p.m. at Conrad Thompson Funeral Home in downtown Kissimmee, and services will be held Tuesday, Oct. 18 at 11 a.m. at First Baptist Church Kissimmee. Smith will be interred at Rose Hill Cemetery.
Smith, a former educator, was also a past president of the Education Foundation Osceola County, who called his passing on social media over the weekend, “An undefinable loss.”
“He was an amazing man, a mentor and a friend to everybody I know,” Education Foundation Executive Director Kerry Avery said. “I got to know him for 20 years. He was a humble public official, and always had time to talk to people, children and adults alike. He was a man of integrity, and one of the most amazing people I’d ever met.”
Even after passing on the reigns of the foundation's presidency five years ago, he was still ever-present, giving of his time and an omnipresent figure at its annual golf tournament. He remained the Foundation's President Emeritus.
The Foundation is establishing Kenneth Y. Smith Scholarship, an endowment that will be awarded annually. Donations are being accepted at its website (www.FoundationOsceola.org), and will also be accepted at the Golf Classic on Nov. 11 at Royal St. Cloud Golf Links.
Smith, who grew up in Zellwood and attended Apopka High School in northwest Orange County, was a teacher, coach and administrator at Osceola High School from 1965-78. After leaving the profession and working in real estate, he returned to the classroom in 1993 when Poinciana High School opened. It was in the classroom that he first made a mark on people, like former Osceola County Sheriff Bob Hansell, who had Smith as a teacher, then gained him as a mentor when the two served in office at the same time in the 2000s.
“He was a wealth of knowledge about Osceola County government when I ran for office, then when I got elected, he became a great advocate for law enforcement,” he said. “He was the epitome of a community servant, and made our community a stronger place. It’s a true loss for us.”
Smith served on the Kissimmee City Commission starting in 1978, and was the mayor for two terms (1980-88). He was a county commissioner from 1996-2010. Twis Lizasuain, now the CEO of the Osceola County Association of Realtors, was the county’s first public information officer and worked directly with Smith and the commissioners.
“He took an interest in people, treated us like family,” she said. “He truly loved this community and the people in it. He’s left his mark on those of us who still live and work here, making it a better place.”
Smith, Jim Swan, who also passed away weeks ago, and Frank Attkisson, Smith’s district 4 successor who died in 2017 when struck on his bicycle by a motorist, are the trio to hold both the mayorship and Commission gavel.
In 2000, as chairman, he helped spearhead the movement to replace the old outdoor Silver Spurs Arena rodeo ring with what is now Osceola Heritage Park — the indoor, 9,000-seat indoor arena, the Kissimmee Valley Livestock Show and Fair building and Extension Services complex. At the time Smith called it, “a $40 million investment in Osceola County’s future … a tremendous economic kick for the east side of the county. It will be a destination for us,” he told the Orlando Business Journal.
