Who is Bobby Smith?
We are putting the finishing touches on our 82nd Annual State Conference, and you still have time to make arrangements to attend. Believe me, if you don’t, you will most definitely be missing out on a good time.
We have arranged for outstanding education and some very informative speakers. Many outside events have been scheduled for the pleasure of all such as a Spa Day; fishing, pool, golf and domino tournaments; and various site tours that include both Reliant Stadium and the Reliant Center, NASA, and the Houston Museum of Natural Science, just to name a few. If you have any questions, please call me or contact Leah Magnus with Texas Association of Counties. Again, we hope to have the best conference ever, and we hope to see you there.
To complete this article, I thought it would be nice (or not so nice) to tell you a little about myself and my interests, other than working in county government.
I am a native of Polk County, living the majority of my years here with the exception of a six-month period while working for Hughes Tool Company in Houston. I graduated from Livingston High School and attended college at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, graduating with a bachelor of science degree. After working for Hughes Tool in Houston, I then worked in our family owned business in Onalaska. I left that job to run for commissioner of Polk County; at the end of this term I will have served 20 years.
I have many outside interests that I love to pursue during my spare time. I must say that, first and foremost, hunting is the love of my life. So if any of you out there have any deer, dove, quail or other wildlife that may need some special attention, just give me a call. As many of you know, golf also is pretty high on my list of hobbies, although I don’t get to play nearly enough.
I am and have for many years been a supporter of activities which involve our youth. I organized the Onalaska Youth Sports Association and served as president and coach for 20 years. This was quite an enjoyable time because I was able to be with my two boys while they participated in sports.
About 10 years ago, I worked with a group of friends to organize the Polk County Area Go Texan Committee that is affiliated with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The purpose of this organization is to provide scholarships to our area youth. We have two main fund-raisers (golf tournament and barbecue cook-off) that enable us to provide the needed funds for the scholarships. As of this date, our organization has been able to raise more than $300,000 to benefit the youth of our county.
Since I love to cook, other Go Texan members and I (and many friends) participate in the Houston Livestock Show barbecue cook-off as well as cooking for weddings, parties and various other celebrations. You know, friends are hard to come by, but I can say I have been very fortunate at having the best there are.
I also serve as a member of the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo as well as a member of the Breeder Greeters committee (also part of the show); I currently serve as the district chairman for the Go Texan portion of the rodeo.
Boy, if you give a politician a chance, he’ll toot his own horn, huh? For 35 years I have been a member of the Onalaska Volunteer Fire Department, serving as chief for 30 of those years. While chief (with the help of a lot of my friends) we went from one truck to 10 pieces of equipment and now have a 10,000-square-foot fire station with one of the best insurance ratings in the state of Texas for a town of our size.
Many of you have met my two boys, Brandon (who has given me not only the prettiest grandson in the world but also the “baddest” – we call him Layne) and Brett, who has just announced his wedding plans and will marry Kari in October.
As before, I appreciate the opportunity of serving as your president and look forward to seeing you at the conference. As we say in Polk County, we’ll treat you so many ways, you’ll have to like one of them.
9smith-735Smith, Bobby – Sept. 04