The Donna M. Smith papers consist of correspondence, photographs, and other materials, primarily of a private nature, that document Smith's life and her interests in lesbian and gay rights, the environment, and animal welfare. The bulk of the collection consists of personal correspondence including: an exchange of letters with Celia Hunter, Alaska conservationist and environmentalist; letters and cards from Ruth Poirier and Doris Pressler (Pressler, the first woman civil engineer in the county of Los Angeles also played with Peggy Gilbert and The Dixie Belles); and Suzanne Kushner. The personal correspondence contains postcards to her partner Valerie Jarrard from the 1950s. The General correspondence consists of Smith's letters regarding political and volunteer activities. Other materials include four address books used by Smith and a journal, written in the third person, describing Donna's and Valerie's vacations, 1973-1977. A file of educational materials (1980) from a class sponsored by the Gay & Lesbian Community Service Center includes information on counseling Gays and Lesbians, and the syllabus for the class Theories, Development, and Intervention Strategies for the Homosexualities. Smith's statement to the Franchise Tax Board following Valerie's death (1982) underscores the challenges survivors of same-sex relationships encountered. Other files contain Smith's identification and membership cards, as well as her will and several obituaries. The photographs (1987-1991) depict Smith with friends, and document her involvement in the community, in particular with the Lesbian & Gay Rights Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Color negatives of many of the photographs also survive in the collection, as well as large-format black-and-white negatives for which no prints exist.