A memorial service will be held Saturday for Len Smart, an advocate for black small businesses who died suddenly and unexpectedly.
Smart, who was 57, collapsed last Friday, and the family’s still not sure why, according to one of his sons, Robert Smart.
The service will take place at Curvin K. Council Funeral Home, 128 Dwight St. The viewing will take place from 10 a.m. to noon, the memorial service from noon to 1.
Len Smart was a visible presence around town at business gatherings. As deputy director of the Greater New Haven Business & Professional Association — in effect, New Haven’s black chamber of commerce — he worked long hours to help build an economic base in the Dixwell neighborhood and beyond.
(For some Independent stories in which Smart appeared, including one about his efforts toward rebuilding Dixwell Plaza, click here, here, here, and here.)
In addition to his post at the BNHB&PA, Smart ran a consulting firm for small businesses and worked with the federally-funded Small Business Initiative.
A native of Stratford, Smart earned both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in economics at the University of Connecticut. He rose through the ranks of the Connecticut Development Authority before concentrating on small-business development in New Haven.
“His passion was to help underprivileged people, to help out his community” through nurturing private enterprise, his son Robert said Tuesday.
Clayton Williams, a small business specialist with city government who has also worked in the state’s development vineyards for decades, crossed paths with Len Smart for over 20 years.
“While being focused on small businesses, particularly those owned and operated by African-Americans, he also had a great sense of humor,” Williams said. “Len will be missed.”
Smart was also active with the Regional Growth Partnership, serving on that regional economic development organization’s Strategic Planning Committee and Brownfields Committee.
Besides Robert, he leaves behind another son, Leonard Jr., daughter Kimberly Smart, and daughters-in-law Jermell and Tonya Smart. For his full obituary, click here.