A native of Mississippi, Hope spent most of her life in Birmingham. She graduated from Ramsay High School and the University of Montevallo where she was named to the Who's Who Among American Universities and Colleges. At Montevallo she pledged Omega sorority and was honored to be the Sister to the brothers of Theta Sigma Chi. She was a medical technologist at the University Hospital - UAB, from 1971, until her retirement in 1995.

Hope was an inspiration to hundreds of breast cancer survivors over several years. She served in many volunteer capacities with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. The Birmingham affiliate of the Komen Foundation co-named its Life Is A Gift Award in honor of Hope. She served the organization as co-chair of the Birmingham Race For The Cure for three years, and headed the Sponsorship and Volunteer committees for numerous years. Due to her selfless dedication to service, in 2001, the national Komen Foundation awarded her its National Lifetime Volunteer Service Award. She was also one of the first recipients of the American Cancer Society's Life Inspiration Award in 1996. In service to her church, Trinity United Methodist in Birmingham, she served as a member of the Interfaith Hospitality Network, participated in two mission trips to Panama, worked with Cross Training, a ministry to junior high school students at Trinity, as well as work as a leader in Trinity's United Methodist Women group, and a member of the church's administrative board and her Sunday School class. In 2003, shortly before her death, she was awarded the Nathalie Molton Gibbons Alumni Achievement Award by the University of Montevallo Alumni Association. Afterward, the Alumni Association named its annual 5K run that takes place during Olympics Day at the University, the Hope Bryant Smith Memorial Run. Proceeds from this event go toward the Hope Bryant Smith Service Scholarship, awarded annually to a student with sophomore standing with a 3.0 GPA and an active role in community service.