Patrick Smiley

He was born on September 18,1926 He had a rough childhood with a father who didn’t treat his family well. His father left the family when he was young and he had to find a job to help support his mother and brother and sister. His first job was selling strawberries on the street. He met the love of his life, Constance Carlin Buchanan, when he was just 12 years old and she was 8. He joined the navy When he was old enough and sent her a ring in the mail. She returned the ring to his mother because she said she wasn’t ready to be married at that time. That didn’t make anyone very happy. He didn’t give up and they were married a short time later. They had three children, Constance Jean, Joseph Henry jr. And Douglas William. He was away on deployment a lot of the time leaving Connie to raise the children. She was smart, resourceful and knew how to stretch a navy dollar. They were deployed and lived in Sasebo Japan, for a time, in a traditional Japanese home until they could get into navy housing. They met life long friends The Snyder’s there. Eventually, they bought a home and settled in Bonita, California. Where they resided for 40 years. They always had animals, a large garden and grandchildren in the home. They enjoyed fishing, camping and spending time at their cabin in Alturas, Ca. They were great neighbors and even better friends. Respected and beloved.