Iconic Brevard County Leader and Public Servant Dr. Joe Lee Smith Passes Away Sept. 1 at 89

Smith devoted his career to Brevard Community College — now Eastern Florida State College

WATCH: The Space Coast is mourning the loss of Joe Lee Smith — an educator, civic leader, and Rockledge City Council member for more than three decades — who passed away on September 1 at the age of 89. He was inducted into the Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – The Space Coast is mourning the loss of one of its most influential community leaders. Joe Lee Smith — an educator, civic leader, and Rockledge City Council member for more than three decades — passed away on September 1 at the age of 89.

Smith’s public service spanned 36 years on the Rockledge City Council, where he held positions as council chairman and deputy mayor before retiring from elected office in 2019.

A respected educator, Smith devoted his career to Brevard Community College — now Eastern Florida State College — where he worked as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and dean before becoming provost.

Though he retired in 2000, he was later called back to lead the Palm Bay campus, ultimately serving as provost for all four campuses before officially stepping down in 2017. Upon retirement, the college honored him with the title of ambassador.

Born and raised in Cocoa, Smith pursued higher education at Florida A&M University, earning both bachelor’s and master’s degrees before completing a doctorate in educational administration at the University of Florida.

His dedication extended far beyond academics and politics. Smith helped establish the Central Brevard Recreation Association and served on the boards of numerous local organizations, including the United Way of Brevard, Salvation Army, Rolling Readers, Circles of Care, and the Boys and Girls Club.

His name lives on through several community landmarks: the Joe Lee Smith Recreation Center in Cocoa, the Dr. Joe Lee Smith Teaching Center in Melbourne, and a stretch of Edwards Drive in Rockledge, renamed in his honor.

Smith is survived by his wife of 63 years, Altamese; two children; two grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by one child and one grandchild.

Over the years, his leadership and service earned him widespread recognition, including the Brevard Community College Distinguished Service Award, Onyx magazine’s Humanitarian Award, and the South Brevard NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award.

He was inducted into the Brevard County Space Coast Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame, the Florida A&M Sports Hall of Fame, and the Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

DR. JOE LEE SMITH – 2015 SPACE COAST SPORTS HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE PROFILE

The lessons taught by sports provide a philosophy of life for Dr. Joe Lee Smith, educator, advocate, and mentor.

The parents of this Cocoa native always instilled in him and his three siblings the importance of a good education and participation in sports.

“My mom only went through the third grade and worked as a café cook, and my dad had a fourth-grade education and was a fruit picker, but they were both adamant that all of us get a good education and get involved in sports,” said Smith.

Smith chose baseball as his sport, which helped him achieve his educational goal of earning a bachelor’s degree from Florida A&M University, where he made the team as a freshman, a rare feat.

He captained the baseball team in his junior and senior years.

Without the sports scholarship he earned, there was no way Smith could have gone to college.

“At one time, all four of us were in college on athletic scholarships,” said Smith.

With a master’s degree in education, also from Florida A&M, and a doctorate in education from the University of Florida, Smith went on to do his parents proud.

His alma mater honored his efforts by naming him to the university’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.

As a classroom teacher, coach, director of athletics, assistant principal, dean, and provost during a long and distinguished career in Brevard, Broward, and Dade Counties, Smith always strived to be a role model for young people.

In the sports arena, one of his first jobs was as head coach of football, basketball, and baseball, as well as athletic director, for Gibson High School, a historically black school in Titusville.

“We had little equipment and few players, so we really had to work hard to develop the program,” said Smith.

“At times, we didn’t even have enough helmets and shoulder pads for all the players, but the community got behind us and helped us. We started with very little, but we were still able to mold young men.”

Dean and provost of Eastern Florida State College’s four Brevard campuses until his retirement in 2000, Smith also served as executive director of the Moore Multicultural Center. Coaxed out of retirement, he currently serves as the executive advisor to the president and college ambassador at Eastern Florida State College.

In honor of his commitment to higher education, the college’s board of trustees dedicated the Dr. Joe Lee Smith Teacher Center at the college’s Melbourne campus.

Among the numerous awards he has earned over the years is the Humanitarian Award, presented by Onyx magazine in 2005. United Third Bridge honored Smith with the Taino Award for his efforts to advance the cause of the Hispanic community in Brevard County.

Junior Achievement of the Space Coast inducted him into its Business Hall of Fame in 2006. Smith is also the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement/Living Legend Award of the South Brevard branch of the NAACP.

For 32 years, Smith has served on the Rockledge City Council. The list of organizations that he has supported with his time and talent is long and includes Circles of Care, the Salvation Army, Space Coast Rolling Readers, United Way of Brevard, and the Boys and Girls Club.

The former Magnolia Street Park in Cocoa was renamed the Joe Lee Smith Recreation Center in recognition of his contributions to the community, serving both its young and old.

Among his four daughters, three grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren, Smith is keeping a close eye on four-year-old great-grandson Jaedon, who is already showing proficiency in the T-ball League.

“I think he is the one who’s going to take the baseball baton from me,” said Smith.

CLICK HERE TO SEE ALL THE MEMBERS OF THE SPACE COAST SPORTS HALL OF FAME

FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE SPACE COAST SPORTS HALL OF FAME OR TO MAKE A NOMINATION, call 321-615-8111 or e-mail Contact@SpaceCoastdaily.com.

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