Rod was born Aug. 2, 1953, in El Paso, Texas, to Robert and Phyllis Smuts.
He was their third of four sons: Robert Jr., Lloyd (Skip) and Larry. Rod moved to Rangely in 1962, and was graduated from Rangely High School in 1971. He later married Lenora Caldwell in October 1973. Of this union were born three children: Jesse, Dylan and Brielle, who have blessed this family with eight grandchildren.
Jesse has four children: Walker, Riley, Mahaya and Sawyer. Dylan and his wife Mandi have two children: Dylan (Little D) and DawnLynn. Brielle also has two children: Landon Carlson and Kameron with her spouse Keenan Harvey. Rod is preceded in death by his father and his brother Larry.
Memorial services for Rod will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013, at the Rangely Christian Church.