Mabel Catherine Smith, 78, a beloved mother, sister, and friend passed away January 13, 2023 in Pullman, Washington with her son by her side. She was the first born to Mabel Catherine (Banker) and Thomas Erskine on September 18, 1944 in Omaha, Nebraska.

Mabel is survived by a son, William A. Smith, and her six siblings who affectionately knew her as "Sis", they are: Mary Lou Mulloy, Thomas W. Erskine, Theresa Zimmerman, Mimi Jacobson, Marion J. Gommermann, and Margaret Campbell, along with a number of nieces, nephews, and cousins.

She graduated from Mount Marty College in Yankton, South Dakota, where she previously spent three years a novitiate with the Benedictine order of nuns. Education and faith remained important to her throughout her life. In 1979, she returned to college at Washington State University where she would go on to earn her Master's in English in part, by focusing on the works of poet and Jesuit priest Gerard Manly Hopkins. After working as a technical editor at the WSU College of Veterinary Medicine, she relocated to the Seattle area where she worked as an editor for a number of engineering & environmental planning firms.

Mabel returned to an academic setting where she worked in Seattle University's School of Theology and Ministry (STM). In addition to aiding in the day to day operations, she took great pride in working with people of varying faiths and being a part of a strong interfaith community. Until her passing, she was active in editing the dissertations of doctoral candidates from STM.

In her free time she enjoyed reading, arts and crafts, spending time with family, and she could always be found with a loyal pup or two by her side. To all who knew her, she will be sorely missed.