Laura Smith

Laura Smith passed away peacefully at home in Mahone Bay on March 7, 2020. She was surrounded by her family of friends, with love and music.

Laura Susan Smith was born Meredith Susan Battey to Wilma Blaikie at St. Joseph's Hospital in London, Ont., March 18, 1952 and put into foster care. Later she was adopted by Adrian Clarence Smith and Edythe May Smith. She had adoptive siblings, David and Adrienne. In 1999 she found members of her birth family in a reunion that she described as "extraordinary and joyous."

Laura grew up in London loving horses, theatre and poetry. She began to play music at age 19, first teaching herself piano chords, then guitar. Her public debut performance occurred at Smale's Pace, the London coffee house where she worked as a waitress. Laura moved to Toronto in 1975, staying for 10 years before a definitive move to Cape Breton in 1984. The rugged landscape, shifting ocean, moon-filled nights and welcoming community made her feel she had come home. Playing at ceilidhs, she blossomed in the nurturing atmosphere, not only with her music, but also on stage with the St. Ann's Bay Players. She moved to Halifax four years later where she frequently performed at open mic night in the Flamingo Club. Thanks to support from CBC, she recorded her first, self-titled album in 1989. This was followed by B'tween the Earth and My Soul recorded in 1995. The stunning result ignited a blaze of radio and television appearances, a tour and a plethora of special performances. In 1996, she won two East Coast Music Awards and two Juno nominations. In 1997, she won a Gemini Award for Best Performance in a Performing Arts Program or Series. At the request of CBC radio personality, Peter Gzowski, who was receiving a Governor's General Award, she performed My Bonny at the prestigious Ottawa ceremony. She also released her third album, It's A Personal Thing that year to six ECMA nominations.

In May 2003, Laura received an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities from Mount Saint Vincent University on the strength of her songwriting. When time allowed she also started working towards her Music Therapy degree at Acadia University.

After a struggle from an injury, Laura Smith, brave and surfacing, returned into the stream of her songwriting and performing life with the release of Everything Is Moving in 2013.

A private person, despite her outgoing and often wickedly funny stage presence, Laura delighted in preparing gourmet food for friends. She collected vintage linens, loved her dog Diva and often cared for the pets of friends around the province. In recent years, with dedication and attention to detail, she crafted her daily Dear Merebeth poems and accompanied them with her vivid paintings.

She wrote: "I remember once 'coming to', as if from a dream, whilst in the middle of creating a piece of visual art... I was startled by the realization that I was in the same place songs come from! Yes, it did seem like a real 'place' - a place I'd been longing for as I'd not been able to compose. It was so comforting to find another route 'in'. To say I cherish my times creating is an understatement.

Expressing the who, what, when, where and why of life takes reflection but at the same time, for me at least, seems to require one work only in the present tense, guided by a connection to everyone else in this world, to achieve a satisfying outcome. Anything else is just accounting."

Laura will be remembered by her friends and her devoted fans, too numerous to count; all those whose hearts and souls were stirred by her songwriting and her full, rich voice.

She faced her cancer with her indomitable sense of humour, never at war with the disease, but instead determined to be at peace with it. It was a peace that she shared with all who visited in her last months. She always had a smile for each.

Thanks go to the Palliative Care Team of Dr. Debra Gowan and Melanie Spence RN; Trudy Johnson of the South Shore Hospice Palliative Care Society; Dr. Daniel Rayson, Oncologist and his staff; the staff of Fisherman's Memorial Hospital in particular Kevin Grandy RN; the incredible caregivers of Earth Angels and the EMTs of Emergency Health Services. Your support and compassion were a great comfort to Laura in her time of need.

Special thanks also go out to those friends who gave so much of themselves in the last few months. While they are too numerous to note entirely, these include her long-time friends and confidants Ross MacDonald and Virginia Bell; her constant companion, Joanne Purchase-Renaud, musical collaborators, Kim Dunn and Bruce Dixon, Erin Donovan and John Adams, Chris Heide and Deborah Hickman, Laurie Flavin, Lorraine Burch and the Team Tata road warriors.

There will be a wake and funeral at the Mahone Bay Centre, 45 School St., Mahone Bay. The wake will be held Friday, March 13th 2020 from 4-7 p.m. and Saturday, March 14th 2020, from 2-4 p.m., followed by the funeral at 5 p.m., Saturday. All are welcome.

Laura's life and music will be celebrated at a concert on March 29th 2020 at Casino Nova Scotia. Sincere thanks to the many talented musicians taking part.

Donations in Laura's memory can be made to the South Shore Hospice Palliative Care Society or to hospice care in your own community.