SMITH SPEAKS

Michelle Ray Smith stars in the CBS soap opera "Guiding Light" as Ava Peralta. Behind her success in show business, she has endured unimaginable tragedy. On Sept. 29, 2003, police found Smith's father, Jeff Smith, inside a car. He had died from carbon monoxide poisoning, four days shy of his 50th birthday. Smith writes about grappling with his death in the October issue of Glamour magazine. Opening up about her fathers' death was not easy for Smith. In fact, her appearance on The Early Show was the first time she spoke publicly about it. Aside from her own personal pain, the stigma attached to suicide makes talking about it even harder for Smith.

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