Erica Joy Frederick Smith

Erica Joy Frederick Smith, 56 years old, of Oasis, Puebla, Mexico passed away on Wednesday, February 28, 2024. She died at her home of an acute complication after bravely battling a series of medical conditions. She was surrounded in death by her beloved husband, Joey, and close friend, Cuca.

Erica is survived by her husband, Dr. Joel L. Smith of Valsequillo Puebla, Mexico; her parents, J. Mark Frederick and Emma Longenecker Frederick of Lansdale, PA; her sister, Marta Frederick and husband Sam Petersheim of Linville, VA. her brother John Frederick and wife Kristy Brunk of Colorado Springs, CO; her brother Tim Frederick and wife Kim Greaser of Harleysville, PA.  Nieces and nephews according to family include children of Marta and Sam: Emma Petersheim (Austin TX), Lukas Petersheim (Harrisonburg, VA), and Jacob Petersheim; children of John and Kristy: Mitchell Frederick (Colorado Springs, CO),  Trenton Frederick, Ethan Frederick; and children of Tim and Kim: Mikayla Frederick (Mechanicsburg, PA), Laura Frederick, and Zachary Frederick. 

Erica was born on Wednesday, January 3, 1968 in Puebla, Mexico. She was the firstborn daughter of J. Mark Frederick Jr. and Emma Longenecker. Erica spent the first 14 years of her life in Mexico (starting out in Puebla, but mostly in Mexico City). Her parents were engaged in church planting efforts throughout Mexico City and Puebla. Although most of her extended family lived in the United States, she was fortunate to have her Aunt Alice (Emma’s older sister) and Uncle Claude Good and their 5 children in Mexico during her childhood. Apart from them, she had a strong support system of Mexican nationals as well as expatriate missionaries who became like a second family. Erica was the oldest of four siblings. Her sister Marta, came 17 months behind her and shared many childhood memories, and mutual friends. Erica had a special bond with her brother, John, one of the things they shared was a love of all manner of games; table games, made up games, and all manner of fun competition. She was similarly engaging with her youngest brother Tim, to whom she was the quintessential older sister, fun, loving and protective.

It was during her early teen years that Erica began to develop a growing sense of calling to a deeper faith in God and the work of the Christian church. She began to ask her parents a lot of questions and to study the Bible in earnest. She was baptized at the age of 13 along a river outside of Mexico City. At the age of 14, Erica moved with her family to Quakertown, Pennsylvania. This was near her extended Frederick and Longenecker families. She attended Christopher Dock Mennonite High School. During her high school years, she was a part of the touring choir, played volleyball and became a member of the youth council for the Franconia Mennonite Conference. For work, she trained as a nurse's aide and began caring for adults at Quakertown Manor. During this time, Erica enjoyed an active social life with friends and youth group and loved spending time with her extended family; grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

After graduating from high school, in 1986, she attended Eastern Mennonite College (now University). While at EMC, Erica had the opportunity to travel to the Middle East for a semester, which was a highlight that included some travel around Europe as well. She graduated from EMC in April 1990 with a BS in nursing and working as an RN in the Orthopedic floor at Grandview Hospital in Sellersville, PA. She became a member of Perkasie Mennonite Church and she enjoyed hosting many young adult gatherings and Bible studies. She stayed connected with many of these friends for the rest of her life, including folks who had come to the US as a part of a youth exchange program called IVEP. During these years, her parents, J. Mark and Emma, had returned to Mexico to continue working with the Mennonite Church in Mexico City. Erica shared the Quakertown home with a group of friends and her brother, Tim, who was in college and came home during breaks. Also, during this time she could be seen cruising around in her burgundy Chevy Cavalier Z24. She lived fully and traveled widely. Besides visits to see her brother, John, in Colorado, her travels included a visit to her sister, Marta, serving with Mennonite Central Committee in Chibuto, Mozambique.

When Erica was asked about her dreams and aspirations, Erica’s answer was always the same - she wanted to be a missionary. It was her heart's deepest desire to take her skills and use them in service to others and God. It was during a visit to her parents in Mexico City that Erica got reacquainted with Joey Smith, a childhood sweetheart and friend who by that time was a medical doctor in Puebla, Mexico. Joey shared a similar dream of medical missions work that he had already begun engaging in. After two years of correspondence and visits, they were married on April 17, 1999 at a Christian Retreat Center called Oasis de Agua Viva. This was the same place that they had first met during their childhood, a retreat center that was founded by the Smith and Harris families. Joey and Erica lived in the Smith family compound, next to the Oasis retreat, for all their married years and stayed involved in its leadership.

During the first years of their marriage, Erica and Joey ran a medical mobile clinic where they would load their truck up with medical supplies and travel to surrounding villages in order to provide house calls and medical care to folks who lived far from medical services. They had aspirations to open up a clinic that would serve the community with medical services as well as provide pharmaceutical supplies. They desired to find ways to live out their faith beyond their medical services and to communicate the message of hope and salvation to those who sought a deeper commitment to God. Together they made a home that welcomed people seeking medical care, a place to have faith conversations, or just a good conversation - that always included much laughter. When the mobile clinic was no longer viable, Erica and Joey kept seeking ways to continue their work to the very end of her life.

Erica had many hobbies and interests. There really wasn’t a flower she didn’t love. In PA, one of her favorite places to go was Longwood Gardens. In Mexico, she loved the Flower Festival in Huachinango. She grew many flowers, including gladiolas, roses, gardenias and poinsettias. She loved blooming bougainvillea vines and Jacaranda trees. Erica shared a hobby of collecting stamps with her father. She cross stitched, put together puzzles and loved playing games. She shared a special gift of hosting with her mother. She loved to cook, made delicious holiday meals and her Mexican dishes were exceptional. Erica loved Christmas and this was when all these interests culminated in a 2 month long celebration. She had a way of decorating for Christmas that was magical. Another highlight in Erica’s life were the Women’s retreats she attended a few times a year where she would spend time sharing with friends - many times over a puzzle, laughing late into the night. 

Erica loved her family. It was hard to miss family reunions and she tried to make it a priority to attend as many as she could. She was a beloved aunt to both the Frederick and the Smith nieces and nephews. She loved to dote on them and play with them. She was able to channel much of that doting love into the family that she developed in Mexico, including the family of a dear family friend, Innocencia and her niece, Liliana, as well Liliana’s daughters Aidé and Darla. Aidé and Darla called Erica their “adoptive” mother and Joey their “adoptive” father. They will always carry with them Erica’s enduring love. Erica had a dear friend and neighbor, Cuca, who along with Liliana, was near to her in the last months of her life. Cuca was a dedicated companion who sat with her, made her food, cleaned and helped with her care.

Erica was blessed to have a beautiful loving marriage. To her, Joey was the love of her life. The one who made her laugh the hardest, who encouraged her, loved her unconditionally and shared her dream of medical mission work. They admired each other’s gifts, enjoyed many of the same things and complemented each other. They understood the intricacies of being bicultural and bilingual. They would start a conversation in English and end it in Spanish - with a joke sprinkled in for good measure. They took care of each other during sickness and health and were together for 25 loving years. 

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From the Smith Family:

"Left to mourn Erica’s passing, and rejoice in the assurance of everlasting life in Jesus Christ, are her husband, Dr. Joel L. Smith in Valsequillo, Puebla, Mexico; her mother-in-law, Annabel Smith in Michigan; her sister-in-law, Janice (Smith) Salés in Mexico City, Mexico; her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jim & Bryn (Otterness) Smith in Tahlequah, OK; her brother-in-law and sister-in-law Jonathan & Linda (Stack) Smith in Colorado Springs, CO; Nieces and Nephews: Angeline Smith, Sean & Rebekah (McAuley) Salés, Jeremy & Cate (Pilgrim) Smith, Luis & Katya (Fomenko) Salés, Jason and Brittany (Chen) Smith, and Ariel Smith; Grandnieces and nephews: Joshua and Philip Blake; Isaac Rufus, Eden Rose, Mira Elena, Joella Haven, Piper Joy, Avery Grace, Willow Faith, and Hazel Mercy Smith; Julian and Caiden Smith; Maxim Salés and Baby Salés. Also surviving are other dear family members and many beloved friends.  Erica was preceded in death by Joel’s parents, Rev. Samuel J. and Mary Ellen (Jackson) Smith; nephew, Ben Smith; and brother-in-law, Sergio Salés." 

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Erica was deeply loved and will be greatly missed. We will miss her laughter and her warm hugs. She leaves a rather large space in our hearts, but remains with us in all the beautiful things that she loved and nurtured while on this earth. We are forever grateful that we had her for the time she was here with us. Erica’s funeral service took place on February 29 in Puebla, Mexico. A memorial service is going to take place on Sunday, June 16 at Plains Mennonite Church in Hatfield, PA.  Click on the Event icon at the top of the page for more information and an opportunity to RSVP.