There was no clapping. Instead the auditorium was filled with cries of grief and earnest laughter as Linfield mourned the passing of beloved professor, Scott Smith.

Smith was 54 years old when he died on July 22, after a battle with lung cancer.

In his honor, Smith’s family has created the Scott B. Smith Award, which will be given to Inquiry Seminar students who show promise. The winner will be given a $1500 stipend and an additional $1000 if the student studies abroad during their time at Linfield.

A Linfield history professor since 2002, Smith was a well and widely loved member of the community.

He was a “wise, principled, talent- ed, compassionate” man and “was one of Linfield’s finest professors,” Linfield President Thomas Hellie said.

More than a few students attended the service but the crowd was overwhelmingly made up of professors, celebrating and mourning a revered colleague.

Almost all of Smith’s contemporaries in the history department, a handful of professors from other department, and two former students shared remembrances of him, some more emotional than others.

One of the most impactful reminiscences came from history major Hannah Roberts, ’18, who spoke through tears of Smith’s indelible impact on his students and “his incredible sense of empathy.”

The emotion in the room as Roberts spoke was palpable.

After a tearful pause, she struggled through her final words. “He was always very generous with both his talents and his time. Scott made an immeasurable impact on the students at this campus,” Roberts said.

“He will be deeply missed.”