Smith was a long-distance cyclist and former college football player who seemed to be healthy and fit.

by Len Lear

The Waldorf School of Philadelphia, formerly located in West Mt. Airy but now located at 6000 Wayne Ave. in Germantown, will have its fourth annual “Ode to JoyRide: In Memory of Lewis Smith,” a beloved former parent of students at the school and a resident of Chestnut Hill who died unexpectedly at age 54 in 2011. “Ode”will take place this Sunday, Oct. 9.

Lewis duPont Smith, along with his wife Andrea, was a devoted parent and friend to The Waldorf School of Philadelphia. Lewis served on the Board of Trustees of the Philly Waldorf and was a very active member of the school's development committee. His legacy lives on in his wife Andrea and his three children who all attend or did attend the school. The oldest one graduated in 2014 and is now a junior at Springside Chestnut Hill Academy.

Lewis was an avid cyclist, and the Oct. 9 event will honor two of Lewis' passions, cycling and The Waldorf School. Riders may choose from a 25-mile, 10-mile or 5-mile ride starting at Forbidden Drive, right in front of the Cedar's House Cafe on Northwestern Avenue. The ride will start with the ringing of the school bell by Lewis' children after a brief, live violin performance of Beethoven's “Ode to Joy,” a tune that Lewis would often hum enthusiastically.

There will also be unicyclists and a picnic (new this year) after the ride in Harper's Meadow, complete with bike related games and prizes.

Smith, who was also a teacher, political organizer and philanthropist who sat on the boards of Vox Ama Deus in addition to the Waldorf School of Philadelphia, died Aug. 12, 2011, in Jefferson Hospital after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Despite his struggle with cancer, Smith's death came as a shock to those of us who saw him as an ultra-fit athlete who had an extremely health-conscious lifestyle. Smith was a scholarship football player at the University of Michigan, where he graduated in 1979, but unlike many other high-powered athletes who let themselves go later in life, Smith was just as athletic in his 50s as he was a few decades earlier. The handsome 6-foot-4 long-distance cyclist with a flat stomach and defined muscles was a virtual poster child for healthy living. He cycled up to 50 miles a day, and he had a dream “to shadow the Tour de France.”

At their home in Chestnut Hill, Smith and his wife regularly hosted salons where friends were invited to hear classical music and opera, discuss political philosophy and share good food. Smith and his wife often performed operatic excerpts from Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.” He also entertained guests with recitations of Shakespeare and Friedrich Schiller, legendary German poet and philosopher.

Just a few months before his death, I had lunch twice with Smith, and we talked for hours about subjects that we were both interested in such as The Enlightenment, the French Revolution and Romanticism. We definitely did not agree on all subjects, but I was astounded by his almost encyclopedic knowledge of the subjects discussed. I had no idea he was ill, however, and he told me about several long-distance bicycle trips he had taken in the recent past.

At their home in Chestnut Hill, Smith and his wife regularly hosted salons where friends were invited to hear classical music and opera, discuss political philosophy and share good food.

According to Smith's sister, Valerie Lynch, “Smith was a founding member of the Philadelphia Forum for Anthroposophy, an organization dedicated to the ideas of Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), founder of the movement known as Anthroposophy, which he described as 'a path of knowledge to guide the spiritual in the human being to the spiritual in the universe' and from which biodynamic farming, the Camphill Movement and Waldorf education developed.

“As a young man growing up in Paoli, Smith attended the Haverford School and later the Rectory School and Avon Old Farms in Connecticut, where he distinguished himself as a two-time state champion, two-time New England state champion and a national prep heavyweight wrestling champion in 1975.”

“The world is a lesser place without Lewis,” said George Trautman, former headmaster at Avon Old Farms, after his death.

After college, Smith taught English and history at the Hill School in Pottstown and Friends Central in Wynnewood. In the early 1980s, he was a political organizer.

After meeting Andrea in Philadelphia in 1985, Smith and Andrea married in Rome and later moved to New Hampshire, where Smith ran for Congress. Although he lost the election, he ran again in 1990 as a candidate from Pennsylvania. After a second attempt was also unsuccessful, Smith chose not to run again.

Founded in 1996, The Waldorf School of Philadelphia offers a rich education that meets the needs of developing children in grades pre-K through 8th grade. More information on the “Ode to JoyRide” or the Waldorf School, contact 215-248-1662 or development@phillywaldorf.com.