B.J. Smith

MABSON COMMUNITY…Mr. B.J. Smith, a resident of the Mabson Community, near Ozark, died Saturday evening, January 3, 2025, in UAB Hospital in Birmingham. He was 45.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 A.M. Thursday, January 8, 2026, in the Fuqua Bankston Funeral Home Chapel with Pastor Rick Campbell officiating. Burial will follow in Westview Cemetery. Fuqua Bankston Funeral Home of Ozark is in charge of arrangements. The family will receive friends from 5:00 until 7:00 P.M. Wednesday at the funeral home.

Mr. Smith was born on July 22, 1980, in Ozark, Alabama, and grew up surrounded by the people and places he loved most. He graduated from G.W. Long High School in Skipperville in 1998, proud to be part of a community that shaped him into the hardworking, dependable person he became.

Over the years, he built a strong work ethic through his time with M1 at Fort Rucker in the parts division. Before that, he spent many years helping customers and coworkers at Parts & Service in Ozark and O’Reilly Auto Parts. No matter where he worked, people knew they could count on him. He had a way of making others feel welcome, and he took pride in doing his job the right way.

Outside of work, Mr. Smith enjoyed the simple things that brought him peace and happiness. He loved painting cars, taking something worn and giving it new life with his own hands. He found joy in fishing, spending quiet time by the water, and enjoying the outdoors. He coached for many years, the Pee Wee Football Team in Skipperville. But more than anything, he cherished being with his family. Those moments—laughing, talking, or just being together—meant the world to him.

He was preceded in death by his father, Harold Smith, whom he loved deeply and carried with him in memory throughout his life.

Surviving relatives include his wife, Alicia Price Smith; two sons, Bryce Smith and Cooper Smith, all of Mabson; mother, Sherry Miller Smith; sister, Misty Whitehead (Rickey); brother, Josh Smith, all of Skipperville; nieces and nephews, Adalee Peters, Marlee Price, Hunter Whitehead, Jaxon Whitehead, Brayden Whitehead, and Carter Smith; father-in-law and mother-in-law, Steve and Tammy Price; sister-in-law, Brooke Peters (Luke); brother-in-law, Daniel Price (Bailee); several cousins.

Serving as active pallbearers will be Hunter Whitehead, Jaxon Whitehead, Trae Johnson, Jerremy Baxter, Daniel Price, and Luke Peters.