Mimi Smith

Mimi Smith
Born	Mary Elizabeth Stanley (1906-04-24)24 April 1906 Liverpool, England
Died	6 December 1991(1991-12-06) (aged 85)[1] Poole, England
Occupation(s)	Nurse, secretary, housewife
Spouse	George Smith ​ ​ (m. 1939; died 1955)​
Relatives	Julia Lennon (sister) John Lennon (nephew) Julia Baird (niece)

Mary Elizabeth "Mimi" Smith (née Stanley; 24 April 1906 – 6 December 1991) was a maternal aunt and the parental guardian of the English musician John Lennon. Mimi Stanley was born in Toxteth, Liverpool, England,^[2] the oldest of five daughters. She became a resident trainee nurse at the Woolton Convalescent Hospital and later worked as a private secretary. On 15 September 1939 she married George Toogood Smith who ran his family's dairy farm and a shop in Woolton, a suburb of Liverpool.

After her younger sister Julia Lennon separated from her husband, Julia and her son, the young John Lennon, moved in with a new partner, but Smith contacted Liverpool's Social Services and complained about his sleeping in the same bed as the two adults. Julia was eventually persuaded to hand over the care of John to the Smiths. He lived with the Smiths for most of his childhood and remained close to his aunt, even though she was highly dismissive of his musical ambitions, his girlfriends and wives. She often told the teenage Lennon: "The guitar's all right, John, but you'll never make a living out of it".

In 1965, John bought her a bungalow in Poole, Dorset, where she lived until her death in 1991. Despite later losing touch with other family members, he kept in close contact with Mimi and telephoned her every week until his death in 1980. The Smiths' house in Liverpool was later donated to The National Trust.