Stephani and Robert Walne and family
Some nicknames stick because they so aptly fit the person they describe. Joltin’ Joe. Dizzy Dean. Johnny Football. The King of Pop. The Sultan of Swat. The Queen of Soul. Folks naturally called Stephani Walne “Smiling Stephani,” because she had a big grin and a warm welcome for everyone in our community who came her way.
Stephani died Friday after a courageous battle with metastatic cancer.
Stephani Smith graduated from Lake Highlands High School in 2000 and Texas A&M University in 2004. She married Robert Walne, her high school sweetheart, and they returned to Lake Highlands to raise their family. Stephani quickly rose to leadership in multiple service organizations, including various PTAs and booster clubs. As Women’s League home tour chair, she raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for local schools, nonprofit organizations and college scholarships. As an alumna of Chi Omega sorority, she wrote hundreds of recommendations to help LHHS graduates more easily transition into college life.
Stephani’s favorite topic, though, was her four children — Lucy, Brett, Jack and Charlie. She was first to arrive and last to depart when they were cheering, competing or performing.
You may read more about Stephani’s remarkable life and her extended family in her obituary here.
A memorial service will be held at Park Cities Baptist Church at 1 p.m. on Thursday, May 14. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation may be made here and to the Lake Highlands Women’s League may be made here.
