If you spent a day working behind the news desk at KPRC 2 in Houston in 2025, chances are you heard the phone ring with a familiar caller ID: \u201cDONALD SMITH.\u201d<\/p>\n
When we answered, his request was as consistent as the calls themselves: \u201cTell me the national day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whoever picked up would quickly open Google, search \u201cnational day today,\u201d and share whichever holiday appeared.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t as if he was calling on Christmas or Thanksgiving. The holidays were almost always niche. A few of my favorites included National Polka Dot Day (Jan. 22), National Lego Day (Jan. 28) and National Key Lime Pie Day (Sept. 26).<\/p>\n
Sometimes he called once. Other times, he called a few times \u2014 just to make sure he hadn\u2019t missed anything. He carefully wrote each one down, asking questions to understand what every day represented.<\/p>\n
Afterward, he\u2019d simply say, \u201cAlright, thank you,\u201d and the conversation would end.<\/p>\n
Then, one day in February 2026, the calls suddenly stopped.<\/p>\n
After a few days, we grew concerned. Without even realizing it, telling Donald Smith the national day had become a routine we all had grown attached to.<\/p>\n
We did some digging, and what we feared was confirmed.<\/p>\n
KPRC 2\u2019s Christian Hudspeth<\/a> searched online and found an obituary for a Donald Smith in Houston.<\/a> He had passed away on Valentine\u2019s Day at the age of 99 \u2014 less than two weeks before he would have turned 100.<\/p>\n Kendra Mackey, our morning planning editor who had become a regular voice on the other end of Smith\u2019s calls, reached out to a relative. They confirmed that their loved one was indeed the man who had quietly become an indirect member of the KPRC 2 family.<\/p>\n We didn\u2019t know much about him personally, but his devotion to our station touched us all. The fact that we could give him information he found meaningful was rewarding \u2014 no matter how trivial the holidays sometimes seemed. His small yet steady presence on the phone line was something we hadn\u2019t realized we\u2019d come to cherish.<\/p>\n