Leila E. Smith Creel

Lieutenant Colonel Leila E. Smith Creel, U.S. Army Nurse Corps Retired, age 69, went to be with her Lord and Savior on May 16, 2012 in Biloxi, Mississippi. Leila was the fourth of 12 children, a native of Biloxi and a 1961 graduate of St. Martin High School and a 1963 graduate of the Mercy Hospital School of Nursing in Vicksburg, MS. She served 4 1/2 years active duty with the United States Army during Desert Storm and served with the Army Reserve for 23 years. Leila worked at Howard Memorial Hospital, Gulf Coast Medical Center, Gulfport V.A., Biloxi V.A., and the Naval Home. She volunteered with the Red Cross, was an avid crusader for and an instructor of C.P.R. and worked with AMSERV for cardiac emergencies. Both in nursing and in the army, Leila was known for her leadership skills, adaptability, flexibility, her can do/will do attitude and her focus on team work and unity. Leila loved being a nurse and was an avid patient advocate as she believed in standards of care and safety. In the Army, Leila served as an Operating Room Nurse, Assistant Chief Nurse and Chief Nurse of the 305th Field Hospital in Gulfport and Chief Nurse of the 75th CSH Command Unit in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Leila was often assigned additional duties in the Army as Food Service Officer for ARTEP, Supply Officer, Training Officer, Executive Officer, Battle Training Officer, Convoy Commander for ARTEP, Officer in Charge for Humanitarian Missions in Ecuador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Germany. She lived her life for her children, and she loved being a parent. She called it the "toughest job you'll ever love." She loved being Maw Maw to her seven grandchildren and called it the "greatest job you'll ever love." Leila was preceded in death by her parents, William (Bill) and Bessie Barnes Smith; three sisters, Rachel Tucei Praetorius, Genevieve Gunn and Mona Marilyn Smith; and two brothers, Douglas Wayne and Alvin E. Smith. Leila was survived by her two sons, William H. Creel, Jr. and his wife Cheri and Jamie K. Creel; her daughter, Kena Creel Hendricks and her husband Steve; four brothers, William O. Smith, Jr. and his wife Karen, Donald E. Smith and his wife Judy, Anthony (Tony) Smith and Danny T. Smith; two sisters, Deborah Clowers and her husband Ron and Victoria Hill; seven grandchildren, Joseph Creel, John William Creel, Taylor Creel, Aidan Creel, Caleb Hendricks, William Creel Hendricks and Bessie Hendricks; a cousin Curtis Lee Scarborough and his wife Linda; and numerous nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be sent to Community Bank for a scholarship fund to be established in memory of Leila to assist Gulf Coast nursing students. Visitation will be held at Bradford-O'Keefe, Howard Avenue in Biloxi Sunday, May 20 from 6:00 until 8:00 p.m. with the reciting of the rosary at 7:00 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Monday, May 21 at 1:00 p.m. at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church where friends may visit one hour prior to Mass. Burial in the Biloxi National Cemetery will follow the Mass. The family would like to thank Doctors Todd Moore, P.V. Pande, Ijlal Babar, David LaRosa, Eva Majiros, Michael Cunningham; Cindy Walker, R.N.(Oncology) and Vicky Foley, R.N.(Camellia Home Health) for their special care.