Albert Charles Schmick, 77, of Smith Mountain Lake, Va. and 1778 Old Providence Road, Raphine, died Tuesday, May 30, 2006 at his residence in Augusta County.
He was raised by his grandparents, Leonard and Emma Schmick in Catawissa, Pennsylvania, graduated from Catawissa High School and later from Columbia Institute's School of Broadcast Communications in Philadelphia, PA.
He was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and served on the Berlin Airlift.
After military service, he spent his entire adult working life in broadcasting, rising all the way through the ranks from announcer/music director to program director, sales manager and then vice-president and station manager at WAYB in Waynesboro, VA.
During that time he also announced many sporting events including NASCAR automobile racing, and broadcasts on the University of Virginia Football and VMI Basketball radio networks.
He formed his own corporation in 1973 and acquired ration station WTON in Staunton, Va. He also was president, general manager and principal owner of Dominion Broadcasting, Inc. and owner and operator of WKEU Am/Fm in Griffin, GA.
Active in many civic, governmental and business affairs, he served as a president and director of the Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters and on the board of directors at the Virginia Association of Broadcasters. He was a past president of the Waynesboro Retail Merchants Association, chairman of the Waynesboro Planning Commission, chairman of that city's Citizen Advisory Committee and was a member of its Biracial Commission. He was a past president and director of the Staunton/Augusta County Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Staunton Adult Distributive Education Advisory Committee. He served on the Board of the Staunton Rotary Club and the Waynesboro Kiwanis Club and was the second president of the Waynesboro Jaycees and a life member of the Virginia Jaycees.
Mr. Schmick also was an honorary life member of the Staunton/Augusta First Aid and Rescue Squad, Inc., a past member of the board of directors of Augusta Expo in Fishersville, Virignia, the Waynesboro/Staunton, Jr. Achievement, Inc. and the Waynesboro Chapter of the American Red Cross.
He was a member of the Staunton City Council Economic Development Advisory Committee, a member of the VFW, and a life member of the American Legion.
After retirement to Smith Mountain Lake, he was an active member of what was then the smith Mountain Lake Policy Advisory Committee and served as chairman of a three year long massive debris cleanup project, which utilized heavy equipment in the removal of over 4000 tons of debris from the upper reaches of the main arms of the lake.
Throughout his 40 years of radio broadcasting, he was personally the recipient of numerous awards from the Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters and the Virginia Association of Broadcasters, including the prestigious Douglas Southhall Freeman Award for public service through radio journalism, as were the stations he owned and operated.
He also received outstanding service awards from both the Virginia Education Association and the Virginia High Schools Coaches' Association. He was a member of the Waynesboro Main Street United Methodist Church and later attended Glade Hill Baptist Church near Smith Mountain Lake, and Old Providence Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Raphine.
He is survived by his loving and devoted wife, Linda; two sons: Jeffrey Schmick and David Schmick and their wives; two stepchildren: Tonya Doyle and Tom Doyle and his wife; one sister, Florence Howantiz; seven grandchildren; four stepgrandchildren; and four great grandchildren.
The McDow Funeral Home in Waynesboro is handling the arrangements. A funeral service will be conducted at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 3, 2006 in the chapel at the McDow Funeral Home. Interment with military rites will be at Mt. Carmel Presbyterian Church cemetery, Steeles Tavern, Virginia on Saturday, June 3, 2006.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home Friday, June 2, 2006 from 7 to 9 p.m. and at other times at the home in Raphine, Virginia.
