Smith left home when he was 15 and ended up in Huntsville , Alabama , where he stayed until he joined the Army in 1963 or 1964 . Soon after he joined the Army , Smith became an aide to General William Westmoreland who was in Australia at the time .
From Australia , Smith went to Vietnam where he was asked to be a forward observer . “ On one of many long and pleasant drives I enjoyed with Smitty he told me nothing scared him more at the time than walking in the dark ,” van Wagenberg said . “ Sure enough that ’ s what he was ordered to do and , sure enough , he did it .”
On one of his missions Smith stepped on a land mine which exploded and shattered one of his legs . The explosion also threw him against a tree resulting in a broken shoulder . He was flown to hospital in San Francisco for surgery , and spent six months there recovering .
In the mid to late 60 ’ s Smith returned to the East Coast and attended the University of Wilmington for his undergraduate degree , then he attended NYU where he received his MBA . One of his professors at NYU was Carl Icahn , who gave his students sage advice on pricing - a subject Smith appreciated and understood .
Sometime in the early 70 ’ s , his associates said , Smith married . His wife , Karen , predeceased him by 13 years . Karen was also Smith ’ s business partner . Around 2007 Smith and Karen adopted an 8-year-old girl , Jessie . Today Jessie is married to a lieutenant in the Marines and they are expecting their first child later in the year .
Editor ’ s note : Dries van Wagenberg and Shane Sweet provided information for this obituary , and wrote portions of it .
� FIELDPIECE INSTRUMENTS AWARDS GRANTS
Fieldpiece Instruments , manufacturer of tools and test instruments for HVACR , has awarded a total of $ 17,500 in grants to seven students in the first round of its second annual # Mast eroftheTrade Scholarship program . An additional $ 10,000 will be distributed to the six gold , silver and bronze medal-winning high school and college / postsecondary students that top the leader-board rankings of the National Leadership & Skills Conference in June .
The # MasteroftheTrade Scholarship , administered through SkillsUSA , aims to close the talent gap in the U . S . labor market for the heating , ventilation , air-conditioning and refrigeration trades by allocating funds to industry up-and-comers to use for college tuition fees or postsecondary HVACR technology program costs .
“ With so many deserving applicants to the # MasteroftheTrade Scholarship , it was a challenge selecting the seven winners . We received many applications from across the nation submitted by bright , talented and motivated individuals pursuing a future in HVACR , which was extremely rewarding to see ,” said Fieldpiece Instruments ’ head of marketing , Diana Liem . “ Congratulations to this year ’ s group of recipients ; Fieldpiece is honored to provide these financial gifts as we continue to encourage industry growth through other initiatives like student discounts and in-depth skills enhancement for HVACR pros at all levels through Fieldpiece University .”
The seven SkillsUSA students named to receive the initial round of funding for Fieldpiece ’ s second annual # MasteroftheTrade Scholarship are :
· Alabama : James Rogers , Alabama Army National Guard and Jason Rawls , Bevill State Community College
· Massachusetts : Hunter Claflin , HVARC program at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School
· Nebraska : Thomas Harling , University of Nebraska Lincoln
· North Carolina : Irma Gonzales , Central Carolina Community College
· Oklahoma : Ben Williams , East Central University
· Tennessee : Stacey Hicks , Chattanooga State Community College
Fieldpiece Instruments first introduced this scholarship program last year to help address the nearly one-hundred thousand unfilled HVACR technician jobs in the field reported in 2022 .
� ALTWHEELS FLEET DAY : OCT . 2
AltWheels Fleet Day is a one-day conference that brings together corporate and municipal fleet managers and clean-fleet stakeholders . It is scheduled for Monday , October 2 , 8am - 4pm EDT at Four Points by Sheraton in Norwood , Massachusetts .
AltWheels Fleet Day is an annual sustainable transportation event that brings together corporate and municipal fleet managers and clean-fleet stakeholders working to reduce emissions and lower costs for tomorrow ’ s transportation needs .
AltWheels is a nonprofit 501 ( c )( 3 ) organization with a mission to build a “ Sustainable Transportation and Energy Vision for the 21st Century .” AltWheels started in 2003 with a public festival held at the Larz Anderson Museum of Transportation in Brookline , Massachusetts . In 2006 , the event was relocated to Boston City Hall Plaza , at the invitation of Boston ’ s mayor , for the next two years . In 2007 , the AltWheels public festival on Boston City Hall Plaza had over 25,000 participants . In 2008-2010 , AltWheels was held at Staples headquarters and in 2011 , AltWheels moved to the Four Points by Sheraton and has remained there since .
AltWheels is where municipal and corporate fleets come each year to understand more sustainable transportation options . AltWheels showcases the latest vehicle and fuel technologies , educates passenger and fleet consumers on best practices , promotes real choices that exist in the marketplace , and stimulates the demand for choices that will improve public health and air quality . AltWheels has won awards from the EPA and WTS for its effectiveness in changing thinking about transportation and real practices and behaviors
Focusing on helping Fleets to Build a Future Roadways Toolkit , last year ’ s Fleet Day drew 300 attendees , 35 speakers , 29 sponsors , 28 exhibitors , 20 co-hosts , and 20 display / ride and drive vehicles for demos from more than nine states . For more information , visit www . althweels . org . l FON
8 JUNE 2023 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www . fueloilnews . com