Leigh's Testimony and Poem in honor of Smiley

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Leigh Clement. I’ve had many people ask me if and how I’m related to Smiley. Well that depends on how you define related. My Mom and Dad moved into a house on Lancaster Avenue many years ago. They had no idea that they were moving in beside such a wonderful family – the Howell’s – Marshall, Margie, Barry and Bryan. And they had no idea that the Howell family would become as close as family to all of us. When I was born and then later Blair, Smiley and Bryan had 2 little sisters and we had 2 big brothers. We thought they were so cool! I always told everyone that I was related to the Howell’s. Blair and I attended every Howell reunion, so I thought that made us family.

As I got older, I realized that the reunion attendance didn’t make us family, but something much better and longer lasting. You see, we have always loved each other like family. There has never been a time in my life that they weren’t there for me. That’s good enough for me to call him my brother!

From the time I started driving, Smiley always took care of my tires. It’s a pretty good perk, I thought, to have your brother own a tire store. I can’t remember how many times he rescued me by coming to wherever I might be with his air tank in order to get me to Wholesale Tire so he could fix whatever was wrong. But Smiley didn’t bring his air tank to me just because he loved me – he did that for everyone! I know he helped many of you in the same way! What a nice guy!

Smiley chose a career in a service industry – service to others. And he was so great at it! You can’t be in the business that Smiley was in and not be a people person. Let’s be honest, none of us wants to spend money on a set of tires. But tires are a necessity, and when you bought your tires from Smiley, you knew that you were getting good tires and getting them with that good ‘ole hometown service! Smiley loved his tire store, but mostly he loved his customers. Thanks to all of you who have been such loyal customers to Smiley for so many years.

There are lots of words that can be used to describe Smiley Howell. I won’t even try to list them all. His youngest son, Luke, has started a list of such words. It’s a pretty long list with words like strong, courageous, and Christian, and I know Luke has not finished with it yet.

Smiley’s journey has been a tough one this past year, especially the past few months. He endured such intense pain – such pain that none of us can even imagine. He worked through that pain until his body just wouldn’t allow him any longer. He was in and out of hospitals. He fought so hard the entire time. He was not willing to give up on life without a fight. That fight took him to Korea. But he couldn’t have made that trip without the help of a lot of people. This community pulled together like no one has ever seen. Smiley’s miracle trip was truly a miracle. Even though doctors were not able to heal Smiley’s body, I believe that this trip was part of a bigger plan – God’s plan. Lives were changed through Smiley’s story – his story of courage, of strength, and mostly of faith! Smiley’s trust in His Lord was made known to so many people. I truly believe that God was always in control of Smiley’s life – and all of us were put into his life for a purpose. God used a wonderful man to reach so many hearts. I’m so proud to have had the privilege to know and love Smiley!

Today, I would like to share with you a poem that I’ve written to Smiley. I’ve only written poems for 2 other occasions – my Dad’s retirement and my sister and brother-in-law’s wedding rehearsal. Both of those times were special and both were celebrations. Today is also special and it is also a celebration – a celebration of Smiley Howell.

So here’s my poem – it’s simply titled “Smiley”:

“Smiley”


Barry Marshall Howell or “Smiley” as we like to say;
We’re all gathered here together to celebrate your life today.

You were born in Greer - Marshall and Margie’s first son;
They brought you up in this Church and loved you a ton!

You grew up and operated Wholesale Tire;
Helping other people was always your desire.

We always thought that you would never wed;
But then you met Patty,
And the phrase “We’re getting married!” is what you said!

You married in Charleston in 1984,
And your love for her grew every minute, more and more.

Then along came Logan, Tyler, and Luke, the apples of your eyes;
Now they’re 21, 18, and 14 – my how time flies.

They know how much you loved them and how proud you were too;
For you were always there for them, teaching them what to do.

From band concerts and sports events to academics, too;
As long as they gave their best, that’s what was expected by you.

You’ve always been a loyal Greer High Yellow Jackets fan;
And what a proud moment when you saw Luke coming out of those stands!

All of your boys are way too young to lose their Dad;
But they know you’ll be looking over them during the good and the bad.

You’ve left them a great legacy to pass on to their sons;
To never give up, the Lord decides when your work here is done.

Just as you loved your family, you loved your friends, too;
Please tell God that we all need His help to go on without you.

You lived your life to the fullest, and that we all know;
You worked hard and played hard and smiled as you did so!

One of your favorite things to do was go to a NASCAR race;
With Rich-Man, your buddies, and a full Schlitz case!

And we can’t forget your Gamecocks, you were such a loyal fan;
But that never got between you and your Clemson friends, Richard and Stan!

Card playing on Wednesday nights was a routine for years and years;
Those guys will miss you terribly and probably play now with a few tears.

2008 proved to be a very difficult year for you;
The cancer, the heart problem, and that bad infection, too.

No matter what was thrown at you, you battled with all of your might;
We all watched in amazement as you put up an incredibly courageous fight.

We named your journey to Korea “The Smiley Miracle Trip;”
Your faith and trust in God was clear - you didn’t hesitate a bit.

I hope you understand now how many lives you’ve affected – just look at all these guests;
Our lives will never be the same - you’ve changed our hearts for the best.

You were such a wonderful son, brother, husband, father, uncle, and friend;
And you never stopped loving life, even up to the very end.

We’re gathered here together not to say “good-bye;”
We’re all here in God’s house to say “We’ll see you on the other side!”

I know that you’re in Heaven now, and God has blessed you with His special touch;
But Smiley B, you’ll always be a part of us – for we all love you so very much!

Wednesday 11/26

Hey everyone. I haven't written in the last couple of days because we had not received any new information. As you can all imagine, the wait to get Smiley's body back to us has been a very hard one. It seems that the grieving process is being made even harder with this wait.Steve is on the plane right now. He will arrive in Atlanta tomorrow morning (our time), and Marilyn will be there to pick him up. Smiley is supposed to arrive next Tuesday, December 2nd. There is nothing that we can do at this point to speed up the process - believe me, I've tried! I feel comfortable that every possibility has been explored. We just have to be patient. Tonight, after we heard the news that Smiley would not return to us until next week, I started wondering why. Then I remembered that this waiting is once again just a part of God's plan. I can't explain it, and honestly, I don't want to try! But I think that the following verses are very appropriate right now, as we all grieve in the loss of our special friend, Smiley:Romans 5:1-5 ...since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.When we wonder why we are having to wait so long in order to pay the proper final respects to Smiley, we all have to put our trust in the Lord. He knows the suffering that we are all experiencing in our loss. He also knew all of the excrutiating pain and suffering that Smiley endured for the past year. He has relieved Smiley of that suffering, and He will help us all through this difficult time. I had the thought that maybe Smiley's body is not supposed to be back here with us yet - God apparantly isn't finished with his miracle trip! I don't know about you, but I'm just going to believe that this delay will only cause many more miracles to happen in lots of lives!My daily calendar had another perfect verse yesterday - just what I needed - so I'm going to share it with all of you. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.Patty, the boys, Margie, and Bryan and his family could not handle the loss of Smiley alone. Neither could any of the rest of us who loved him so much. We're all in this together - that's exactly how Smiley would want it! Thanks again to everyone for the continuous love, support, and prayers! Please continue special prayers for Steve, our angel friend! And when you see him in the coming days, give him extra special hugs and love - he certainly deserves it!!Love and prayers to you all :)I'll be in touch soon...LeighPS - Please visit downtown Greer and buy raffle tickets for your favorite Christmas tree during the Greer Station Festival of Trees. There will be trees at several of the downtown businesses. Raffle tickets can be purchased for $1.00 each. There will be a drawing at each of the businesses on Saturday, December 6th, with the winner receiving the tree from the business!Leigh Clement

Latest Update -- The Glory of Heaven

Hey everyone. My friends, I'm sad to report the news that we have been expecting for a few days. Our dear friend Smiley has departed this life. BUT Smiley is now without pain and with our God!

Luke had the idea yesterday afternoon that they should each talk to Smiley over the phone. Even though they all knew Smiley would not be able to talk back to them, they wanted to talk to him one last time. So, Steve called back around 10:00 pm our time. Each of the boys, Margie, and Patty had their time to tell Smiley how very much they love him. Patty let him know that we would all be okay. She told Smiley to go ahead and close his eyes, go to sleep, and go be with God. Smiley couldn't talk, but he did moan - Patty knew he was telling her that he loves her!

About 3 hours later, Smiley passed away.

This is such a sad day for us - but what a happy day for Smiley!! He is in the place where we all should be striving to get to! And what a reunion he's had today! Marshall has waited a lot of years to see his son again! And we've been wondering if Smiley has gotten in trouble with Bobby and Bo yet! I have no doubt that the Lord is having some great laughs with those guys!!

Smiley fought the fight of all fights. He has been in pain during all of 2008, but he fought so hard. Smiley and Patty's house is full of pictures - pictures of family, friends, and loved ones. There is evidence all around us of this family's love of the Lord! One special hanging that sticks out to me is one in Smiley and Patty's bedroom. It has the letter "B" and under it says the following:

Barry -- Courageous

Only be thou strong and very courageous...that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest
Joshua 1:7

What a perfect description of Barry Smiley Howell!! We are all better people for knowing and loving him!

Please continue to pray for Smiley's family and Steve and his family. We need to always remember the courage that Smiley and Steve have shown during this miracle trip! And what a miracle trip it has been!

May God Bless You all for everything you have done for Smiley and his family! We don't have to stop loving Smiley - we need to keep that love and spread it around - just like Smiley would want us to do :)

Always pray, my friends - always! God is good!

We do not know arrangements at this time. Things will move slower than usual since Smiley passed away in Korea. There are many people working to get the details worked out. I promise I will keep in touch...

Much Love, Thanks, and Prayers to you all :)

Leigh

Thoughts

As I try to process all that is going on, my mind goes to what I once heard a preacher say about someone with cancer. He said that she did not lose her fight, but WON the fight with eternal life. This keeps going through my mind over and over. Those of us here on this earth are hurting and so miss Smiley, but he is pain free! He has a restored body that is more wonderful than ever! Let us all try to remember the happy, positive memories we all have of Smiley. He has touched all of our lives and will continue to do so. We need to all thank God for the opportunity to have known and loved Smiley, he is certainly a precious gift.



Thank you to all who have loved, given, hoped, and most importantly prayed. Please continue your prayers for the family and friends.



"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will feel no evil, for You are with me; your rod and your staff , they comfort me." Psalm 23:4

Update -- Friday 11/21

Hey everyone. The news from Korea is not exactly what we had been hoping for tonight. Smiley is not going to be able to fly home to us. The airline did not deny his flight - Dr. Moon determined that Smiley was not medically able to make the flight.

I want you all to know that I truly believe that Smiley would want things to work out this way. He was very adamant that he did not want his boys to see him pass away from this life. There are so many reasons why Smiley is in Korea at this time. When we took Smiley to the airport for his miracle trip, I wrote of the wonderful spirit that we all felt that day. Smiley was so happy, and it showed on his face! We have such wonderful memories and pictures of Smiley on that day! I will NEVER forget the look on Smiley's face when Patty turned him around in that wheelchair and he saw all of us there - it was a priceless moment! God knew that we all needed to see that hope and happiness in Smiley that day. It will always be great to remember his smiling face :)

It has been so hard for everyone not to worry about Smiley during his fight with cancer, especially during the last few weeks. However, God does not want us to worry, but put all of our trust in Him. The following is one of my favorite verses:

Philippians 4:6 Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank him for his answers.

God answers our prayers. The outcome may not always be what we want, but it is always what God knows is best! Let's all continue to pray and put our trust in God! He will help us through these difficult days!!

Patty, the boys, and the entire family would like to once again tell you that the love and support that you all have shown and continue to show have helped give them the strength to make it - they know that they are certainly not alone!

Love and prayers to you all :)

I'll be in touch...

Leigh

Latest Update -- Pray without ceasing!

Hey everyone. There is not a lot of new information to report today. Dr. Moon is still working on getting Smiley strong enough to make the flight home. We all need to pray that the airline will allow Smiley to fly. They have the right to deny him if they think he's unable to fly. Dr. Moon is doing all that he can to help Smiley onto the plane. Smiley and Steve are scheduled to arrive at Atlanta airport on Saturday morning at 9:45 am. I know that we had all hoped to be there with loving arms to welcome them home, but we are not going to be able to do that. At this point, even the family is not going to travel to Atlanta. The reason is that we would not be able to see them anyway. There will be an ambulance awaiting Smiley when the plane lands. The ambulance will be staffed with EMT's and will bring Smiley and Steve back to Greer. We are unsure at this point if Smiley will go straight to Greer Memorial Hospital or home. We may not know that detail until closer to their arrival.

Please pray for these last couple of days in Korea for Smiley and Steve. The treatment that Smiley receives is very important in getting him home to us. And I can only imagine how hard this journey has been on Steve. I admire him so much for all that he has done. Don't forget that he and his family need our prayers also.

Yesterday was a very tough day. It's very hard to hear that someone who we all love so much will not be with us much longer. But please remember that it has been a huge group effort from a God-loving community that even gave Smiley that hope. And I can tell you for sure, he was so happy to have that hope and to have the opportunity to make the trip! Like I've said many times, God has been and still is working through Smiley's miracle trip. The miracle that we had all hoped for - the miracle of Smiley's healed body - hasn't happened. BUT, through the hope of one miracle, I believe many other miracles have taken place. God is so good - He has a plan!

Thank you all for everything! We need to keep working hard on the fundraisers - there are many medical bills to be paid. Don't forget the Bluegrass Concert and hot dog supper TONIGHT at Blue Ridge Middle School! Hot dog supper begins at 5:30! See you all there :)

Please keep praying - pray for God's will to be done and pray for the strength and understanding for Smiley's family that only God can provide!

Much Love and prayers to you all :)

I'll be in touch...

Leigh

Today's Update...Remember God is with us all!

Hey everyone. I don't exactly know how to write this one. We've gotten some bad news from Korea. Steve and Dr. Moon called Patti around 1:00 am this morning. Smiley is alive, but things aren't looking so good. The doctors have been working on the stem cell harvesting, but tests show that Smiley's liver and kidneys are starting to shut down. Tests lead Dr. Moon to believe that the cancer has spread to his pancreas, which is most likely the reason for the liver and kidney failure. There is nothing more that they can do for Smiley. Dr. Moon is going to try to get Smiley back home to us. He will give Smiley blood, platelets and stem cells in order to try to get Smiley's body strong enough to make the trip home. We will know more details later on, but hopefully Smiley will be back this weekend.

Please pray that Smiley will be able to make it home from Korea. I still believe that Smiley's miracle trip has not been in vain. He so wanted to make that trip - throughout his illness, Smiley has given it his all. Thanks to everyone for giving it your all for him. Smiley's journey is not over - he needs our prayers now for his safe return trip. For reasons none of us can understand, it is not God's will for the doctors in Korea to heal Smiley's body. But I believe that it was God's will for Smiley to make the trip to Korea as part of his journey. I know that hearts and lives have been changed, and lots of us have grown closer to God. We all need to remember the leap of faith that Smiley took. We can all learn from that. Smiley loves the Lord and trusts in Him. We must also depend on our trust in Him, especially during these most difficult times.

Please look at your prayer bracelets often today and pray for Smiley, his family, his doctors, and Steve. We all just want him back home. And when the time comes for the Lord to take Smiley to his final home, like we said to him at the airport, we still won't say "goodbye", but "see you later!"

Psalm 55:22 Cast your burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.

Love, thanks and prayers to you all :)

I will be in touch as soon as we know further information or plans...

Leigh