I configured the SMTP and ran the test and it worked exactly as desired. I ensured that notifications for ALL things related to issues (created, updated, resolved, etct) were enabled in the 'Notifications' and in each project. I created a test issue and no emails were sent. When I go to the Systems Log, this the message I get as a consequence of creating the issue.
"The handshake failed due to an unexpected packet format."
As an aside, this forum is very helpful and has helped me work through most issues - thank you for your help.