Saying farewell to Dale City homicide victims

The church wasn't large enough to hold the hundreds of mourners who came to pay their final respects for Jean and Jim Smith.

Teary-eyed friends and family came to Holy Family Roman Catholic Church in Dale City just before 11 a.m. Saturday to grieve their loss and celebrate the many ways in which both Jean and Jim touched their lives.

"The seats are completely full. We reserved most of the floor seats for the family but had to start seating those because so many people came," said one usher who turned people away from the sanctuary's upper balconies. They were filled with mourners long before the service began.

Parishioners were asked to clear a path so the caskets with the bodies of Jean and Jim Smith could be brought into the sanctuary.

The surviving members of the Smith family watched as both were blessed with holy water.

Rick Smith, 40, comforted his youngest son, Liam, as his late 39-year-old wife and 19-year-old son were carried past him. Sarah Smith, 21, and Connor Smith, 16, also stood near their father and their grandparents.

Hundreds who couldn't be inside the sanctuary peered through closed glass doors.

Even more people were seated in an adjacent overflow room and were able to only listen to the service.

"I don't think it would be an understatement to say a lot of people are praying for you right now," said the Rev. Michael Dobbins, a vicar at Holy Family.

Dobbins led the funeral at the same church that the Smith family has belonged to for many years. It was the first church Jean Smith's parents brought her to after moving to the area from New York state.

Dobbins said their killings have "caused a lot of people to wrestle with God," forcing them to demand answers as to why both were killed.

He urged mourners not to question the killings because "those questions only lead to doubt and de-spair."

He then told the congregation to comfort the family and to continue to provide support for the Smith family in their time of need.

After the congregation accepted communion, more gathered outside the church as members of the local chapter of the Knights of Columbus helped to escort the caskets to a hearse.

Rick Smith hugged his tearful father-in-law, who had lost a daughter and a grandson in the same day.

A procession took the caskets and mourners to a graveside service at Stonewall Memory Gardens in Manas-sas.

After the burial the family invited mourners back to the church for an "Irish" wake. It was to be a celebration of the lives of both Jean and Jim Smith.

"My mom always said 'If I die, I want a party,' and this is what I hope this will be," Sarah Smith told the News & Messenger earlier in the week.

The community has shown an outpouring of support for the Smith family in the past week.

Jean Smith served on the Prince William County Park Authority Board and also ran for a seat on the county's school board. She was active in many volunteer causes, including her time spent volunteering at the schools her children went to, Enterprise Elementary and C.D. Hylton High School.

Jim Smith got into sports while attending Beville Middle School. He then went on to Hylton High School and wrestled. He also sang as a Troubadour—the school's top vocal ensemble.

He had just finished the first semester of his sophomore year at James Madison University, where he was a member of an all-male a cappella group.

A series of candlelight vigils was held last week as many remembered the good times Jean and Jim Smith shared with them.

Prince William police have charged three people in the Smith murder case, including 17-year-old Xavier Pinckney, who police say entered the Smith's home and shot Jim Smith, who was lying on a couch.

After killing him, police said Pinckney was in the process of burglarizing the house when Jean Smith came home. He then allegedly shot and killed her as well.

Pinckney will appear in court on Jan. 12.

Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-878-8065.