Larry Smith moved to Staunton shortly after graduating from Madison College in 1975. He began working at Nationwide and is now located on Coalter Street. In addition to his day job, Smith last year took on the volunteer position of organizing the Fortune-Williams Music Festival featuring Jimmy Fortune and Robin and Linda Williams. The festival is held at the end of September each year, offering three days of concerts, food and other events at the Frontier Culture Museum.
We talked with Smith for a few minutes to find out what keeps him going:
Name: Larry Smith
Education: Covington High School, Class of 1970; Madison College, Class of 1975
Family: Wife, Lynn. Kids, Tyler, a student at Blue Ridge Community College, and Kerry, about to graduate from Riverheads High School and head to Radford University
Favorite movie: "Remember the Titans." It probably suits my competitive nature and my teamwork philosophy. I like Denzell Washington.
Who would you want to play you in a movie? Denzel Washington or Harrison Ford
What's in your iPod? I don't have an iPod. I have XM Radio. Anything from jazz to reggae to country, hits from various eras.
Childhood ambition: To be a teaching coach. I have been blessed, though, because I've been able to coach at the AAU level and have several kids playing at the college level.
Favorite vacation: Zermont, Switzerland. It's at the base of the Matterhorn. My wife and I took a bunch of exchange students over there in 1984. You can only get there by horse-drawn carriage or walking in. It's a unique ski village.
Pet peeve: Probably not being on time, or if I don't have time to exercise that day.
Best advice ever received and who told you? From my good old Mom: Treat people the way you'd like to be treated, and if you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything.
Favorite part of the Fortune-Williams Music Festival: One of the more touching parts for me is seeing the reaction of the patients and the doctors and staff when we go to Augusta Medical Center, but the best feeling is when it all comes together.
What's the one thing you'd like to come out of the festival overall: It's a simple way we can all give back to the community. The community will live long past when Larry Smith is around. I am a replaceable part ‹ the festival needs to go one. Hopefully we have laid a blueprint for that to continue.