Esther Mae Smith was born on February 3, 1917 in Thomasville, Georgia and died on February 13, 2005 in Atlanta. After attending Fort Valley State College, she married and has one child Eleanor. She migrated to Atlanta in 1939. She was the proprietress of Smith's Music and Appliance Company a landmark Auburn Avenue business. She also a past president of Delta Chapter, Iota Phi Lambda Sorority. As a CEO she served as director of the Metro Atlanta/Fulton County Heart Association for twenty-two years. She taught at Hamilton High School and served on the board of Directors where she promoted the passage of the referendum to build the downtown library. She was a member of Ebenezer Baptist Church. As global missionary, she served until her death as Southeastern Director of Foreign Missions for the Progressive National Baptist Convention and founded the New Era Baptist Convention of Georgia. (Taken from Obituary)