Private First Class Smith was a medic with the Medical Company, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. He was Killed in Action while tending his wounded comrades in South Korea on 30 July 1950. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Smith was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Medical Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.