Dale and Beth Smith married in 1987 and they have five children (Ray, Rachel, Esther, Sarah, and Samuel) and two grandchildren.

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Dale grew up in central Louisiana hunting, fishing, and playing basketball.  He graduated from LSU Law School in 1982 and practiced law in Louisiana until 1998. During portions of that time, he served in the Louisiana House of Representatives and Army National Guard.  Beth grew up in Waco, Texas and graduated from Baylor University in 1982.  She became a single mom in 1985 when her husband was killed in a car accident.  Beth is a Stage 3 breast cancer survivor – without chemo or radiation – since her diagnosis in 2010.

 

In 1998, Dale and Beth began a 19-year career with Campus Crusade for Christ where they focused on getting the gospel to unreached people groups.  In May 2019, they founded Jesus Said Go, a non-profit ministry that plans, coordinates, and funds church planting projects in West Africa. They now live in Waco, Texas.  

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On July 26, 2017, their youngest child Samuel, age 19, was killed by the hitchhiker he tried to help. They look forward to that day when their family is reunited.  Beth wrote the story of Samuel’s last year in her book entitled Samuel’s Song: A Story of Rescue & Redemption and it's available in paperback, e-book, and audio book on Amazon.

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