James Schmidt Is June Veteran Of The Month

By Doug KapkeJames D. Schmidt was honored as Jefferson County's Veteran of the Month for June the morning of Tuesday, June 6, prior to the start of the County Commissioners meeting.Schmidt was also presented with a Quilt of Valor, a Vietnam Veteran Lapel Pin and a hand made wreath from Marley Rosener.Jim Schmidt was born May 30, 1947, into a farming family with 11 children at Nelson, Nebraska. Shortly after Schmidt was born, his family quit the farming business and moved to Fairbury, where his father worked for a while at the Fairbury Cemetery and later became the Park Superintendent at Crystal Springs.Schmidt attended grade school in Fairbury and graduated from Fairbury High School in 1965. He immediately began working for the Mahaska, Kansas, Elevator, which was part of the Reynolds Elevator operation.Schmidt continued working at the Kansas Elevator until he was drafted into the United States Army on August 22, 1966. He attended basic training at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Schmidt's training was different than what most recruits experience in their first few weeks of military life. One day, while he was on "kitchen police" in the mess hall, he was approached to haul water to various areas around the base. Schmidt mentioned that another trainee also had a license to drive two and a half ton trucks. Schmidt ended up with a better driving job. He spent the majority of his basic training hauling meals to trainees around the base most of the time throughout weekly training, which gave him a fair amount of free time and he was able to avoid most of the unpleasantness of basic training.After Schmidt's initial military training he spent two weeks in a reception station at Fort Hood, Texas. Eventually, Specialist Schmidt was assigned to Company Headquarters and Headquarters 2nd Armor Division. The unit prided itself in its motto: "Hell on Wheels." Fort Hood was also noted for a large simulated Vietnamese village, where training was conducted night and day. His primary duties were clerical in nature, but he also spent a larger portion of his time driving commanding officers to locations to observe training. After a course in projector training he spent some time showing training films to the Commanding General.In April, 1967, Specialist Schmidt received orders for South Vietnam, but the section commander requested that he needed his specialist with a secret clearance to remain at Fort Hood, where Specialist Schmidt remained until an early out on June 3, 1968, for grain harvest back in Nebraska.While on active duty, Specialist Fourth Class Schmidt received: The National Defense Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal and Expert Rifle Medal. ( Schmidt also spent four years in the inactive Army Reserves).Schmidt and his new bride, Janice, moved to Reynolds, where he began working for the grain elevator. In 1972 Jim became the manager until his retirement in 2014.Schmidt has been a 45 year member of Fairbury Elks Lodge 1203, a 27 year member of Fairbury American Legion Post 24, serving as commander one year, and also served approximately 20 years on the Reynolds Town Board.Today Schmidt and his wife of 56 years live in rural Jefferson County and spend as much time as possible with children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.