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Katherine Izquierdo Smith ’75

January 8, 2020, in Silver City, New Mexico.

Katy was born in New York City and at the age of three moved with her family to Portland.  Her mother, Lois Baker Janzer ’50, was a Reedie, and her father, Manuel Izquierdo, was a sculptor and woodcut artist who taught at the Pacific Northwest College of Art. Katy completed a bachelor’s degree in art at Reed and earned a BA in fine arts at the Portland Museum Arts School.

Although Katy continued to make art for the rest of her life, she never liked the idea of living as a “starving artist.” She earned an MBA from Portland State University and began working as a certified public accountant. She was controller at Georgia-Pacific Corp., financial director at Omolon Gold Mining Company, and CPA for the State of Alaska. With her adventurous spirit, she found jobs around the world, including in the Russian Far East, Norway, Europe, and Central and South America.

Katy was working for the Native Kluckwan tribe in Juneau, Alaska, when she met and married her husband, Phill Smith, in 1990. They continued to live in Alaska, enjoying its outdoors, until Phill retired, when they moved to Silver City, New Mexico. In New Mexico, Katy worked as an accountant at Engineers Incorporated, but never gave up her love for art, continuing to create and fill her home with beautiful works of art. She also had an incredible love for animals, frequently coming home with an abandoned cat or dog and ensuring they received proper care and a loving home. As well as riding, Katy enjoyed spending time with horses, and the horse corrals were always full.

She is survived by her husband, Phill Smith; her sisters, Markrid Izquierdo and Sara Izquierdo; and her brother, Pablo Izquierdo.

Appeared in Reed magazine: June 2020

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