Jesse E. Smith 1968 - 2006
Born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in September 1968, Jesse has gone from our midst at a tenderly young age. However, his life was filled with great achievements in his beloved career in dance, wonderful moments he was able to share with his special partner in dance & life, Lynda.
Jesse first joined the Arthur Murray organization right here in the Minneapolis studio in 1988 & immediately showed great talent. Blessed with his gentlemanly demeanor & handsome looks, he & Lynda Pryce started their partnership in 1990. They showed great promise from an early stage & soon many successes came their way.
They were stars of the Arthur Murray organization & won both the U.S. Rising Star titles in ballroom & rhythm in 1994, being the only couple to do so. They were the U.S. 9-Dance champions in 1994 & 1995, the most crowning culmination of their many other championship victories.
Jesse & Lynda were married on New Year's Eve of 1995 & subsequently Jesse became a franchisee of Arthur Murray in 1996. He showed great business acumen & with Lynda, developed the Minneapolis market into one of our most successful, where it remains today.
We at the head office were most impressed with his wonderful attitude & manners & soon he was appointed Area IV Dance Chairman & soon after received a most prestigious appointment to the International Dance Board in 1998. We are grateful for his many valuable contributions to our dancing syllabi, training tapes & the passing along of his great knowledge to other young staff members in his highly acclaimed training sessions & seminars.
Though Jesse became ill in 2002, he carried on in business & life with great gusto & determined grit. Fatherhood had come & even more maturity developed, & all through his awful illness he never wavered from his chosen course.
The highest honor a franchisee can achieve is to be appointed Area Chairman. The chairmanship of Area IV, our biggest area, was bestowed upon Jesse just last year in 2005. He showed great organizational skills during that short time & his legacy as Area Chairman is now carried on by his wife, Lynda Smith.
To say that "only the good die young" could be considered rather passé today, but nothing could be more true in Jesse's case. Though tragically taken from us at such a tender age, he has had an illustrious career & achieved more than most could do in a longer lifetime.
However, we will always remember his wonderful smile, a reflection of a man with a great heart totally demonstrated in the most important impact of his life, his great love & devotion to his wife Lynda, their son Dayton & their daughter Elyse.
On behalf of Arthur Murray International and his many friends & colleagues in dance, "JESSE SMITH" we bid you adieu with love & respect.
May you Rest In Peace!
