“The Final Tractor Ride”

Joseph Timothy “Tim” Smart, 67, of Crabtree, North Carolina will be having his final tractor ride this Saturday, Feb. 2, as he will be laid to rest. Tim passed away on the afternoon of Saturday, Feb. 14. He was found by his brother and children in the place he always lived – inside his tractor, having passed away from a heart attack.

Born Nov. 17, 1958, Tim was raised on his family’s generational farm, Tim was a steward of the land for over 40 years. He cared for crops and his beloved dairy cows. Tim was a caretaker. He was in awe of God’s Creation as he worked tirelessly to care for all which the Lord entrusted to his care. Tim considered the farm and his family his great responsibilities and took pains to ensure both were held together through the harsh storms that life threw their way. Tim’s tractor was often his church, and his field his altar of prayer. Tim, roughened from life’s hardships, still had one of the biggest hearts and protected and loved his family and farm well.

Tim was a teacher. He taught his children about agriculture and life. He instilled the pillars of work ethic and loyalty to family in his children. Tim was a holder and teller of history and stories. Tim was a private man. While he wasn’t afraid to chat your ear off, few caught glimpses of his innermost thoughts. Tim was an excellent judge of character, which allowed him the ability to provide wisdom for his family. He could be counted on during times of trouble; many people in the community can recount the times that he stood up to help and provide stability during chaos. A farmer was the very first profession of creation. Tim was a farmer in every sense of the word. Tim loved to care for the land, animals, and for people. He welcomed any and all to eat at his table. He had no qualms at providing a meal to anyone. Tim was rough around the edges and rarely made time for leisure, but you couldn’t help but love and respect him. He could fill a room with his presence, in part due to his 6’8” height, but mainly because he always had something fun or wise to say.

Thomas Jefferson described a man like Tim well: “Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God, if ever he had a chosen people, whose breasts he has made his peculiar deposit for substantial and genuine virtue.” Tim was simply exceedingly busy upon the earth and going about his important business of caring for his family and farm, and he carried a great weight similar to Atlas. Our Lord has allowed Tim to lay down those burdens. His legacy will live on through his children and farm.

Tim was a son, brother, and husband. However, the greatest of all was that he was a Daddy and a GrandPappy. He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Cathy Lee Gregg Smart; his children, Sarah Smart Nolte (William Nolte), Joseph Aaron Smart, and Jonathan Adam Smart (Abigail Plemmons Smart) and his cherished granddaughter, Vera Lee Nolte. He is survived by his beloved older brother, Donald Ross Smart (Sharon Erwin). He was predeceased by his parents, Joe Davis Smart and Geneva Ross Smart, and numerous well-loved friends and family.

The family will be receiving friends at Wells Funeral Home in Waynesville on Friday, Feb. 20, from 7-9 p.m. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Wells Funeral Home in Waynesville, with Rev. Josh Evans and Rev. Ray Sheppard officiating. A tractor parade following the service will carry our farmer home to Crabtree on one final tractor ride following the service. Tim lived to farm and spent much of that life in a tractor, and so in death he shall be carried to his resting place at the Crabtree Baptist Church Cemetery in the same fashion. Tim never did care for the somberness of traditional memorial transportation.

This fourth-generation farmer’s worries are over. The fences are mended. The labor is complete. The crops are cared for. The cows are milked. No drought, flood or fire will ever touch him or his farm. He can put away his tools and shut his office door and cut the tractor off. The family he loved and who loved him will carry on his legacy and anticipate their reunion. The Lord has called this farmer home to farm the golden fields above. Rest easy, precious Farmer, Brother, Husband, Daddy, Pappy.

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

-Matthew 11:28-30 NKJV

“Let the farmer forevermore be honored in his calling; for they who labor in the earth are the chosen people of God.”

-Thomas Jefferson

The care of Mr. Smart has been entrusted to Wells Funeral Home of Waynesville