Cherishing Annette: Supporting the Voice of a Century

Hi there! For those of you who don't know me, I'm Lauri Johnson. I'm Annette Warren Smith's daughter.

For those of you who don't know Annette – you probably actually do! She is the "ghost singer" who provided the vocals for Ava Gardner in the film version of "Showboat," and for Lucille Ball in several films.

After marrying a fellow legend in his own right, the jazz pianist Paul Smith, she retired from show business and became one of the premier vocal coaches in Los Angeles. To this day, she still helps people find their voice and discover the best tool of a singer: breath control!

This year, Annette turns 103 years young. She's a walking miracle.

Annette has been living at Harbor Terrace Assisted Living in San Pedro for the last 4 years. She absolutely loves where she lives. She's made friends, enjoys enriching activities like bingo and bridge, and is cared for by an incredible, compassionate, thorough staff we would trust with our own lives. We would like to see her stay there for the rest of her life.

In order to accomplish this, we are raising funds to cover her expenses, as her own funds will be depleted later this year. In short, mom's outlived her money. We should all be so unfortunate!

Your donation will go directly to an account managed by me, that is set up to receive gifts on Annette's behalf, which will be transferred to her fiduciary who manages her bills and expenses.

We can't begin to tell you how much we appreciate your support. Annette is, quite literally, a living legend. You'll be helping to provide her the quality of life she deserves as she lives out her "extended encore."