Tom Schmidt
Tom Schmidt was born Dec. 10, 1930, in Chicago, to John J. and Evelyn (Boden) Schmidt. He was the devoted husband of Betty Schmidt; brother of Joan (Schmidt) Dee of Lake Geneva and Susanne (Schmidt) Klebbe of Cary; and uncle to seven nieces and nephews and four great-nieces and great-nephews.
On April 18, 1959, he married Catherine “Betty” Clark at First United Methodist Church of Park Ridge. Over the course of his life, he lived in Park Ridge, Mount Prospect, Arlington Heights, and for 17 years in Crystal Lake.
In 1952 he received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Carroll University in Waukesha, Wis. From 1952-86, he worked as a chemist and laboratory manager for Magnaflux Corp. of Chicago. His specialties were quality control, test procedure design, and training users of the company’s test methods. He wrote many technical articles as well as large portions of the book “Principles of Penetrants.” In addition, he edited and wrote large portions of the book “Principles of Magnetic Particle Testing” published by the American Society of Nondestructive Testing Inc.
From 1987-93, he worked as regulatory affairs manager for Advance Process Supply Co. of Chicago. Also during this time and through 2000, he ran a successful consulting business teaching users how to perform magnetic particle and penetrant tests.
From 1995 through 2007, he was a counselor and site coordinator for the AARP Tax Aide for the Elderly program. His lifelong passions were reading, travel and photography. His photography was represented by several galleries. In retirement, he developed a business and procedures for photographing fine art. These services were used by many local artists.
Mr. Schmidt passed away on June 18, 2011. We are honored to have known Tom and thankful for his contributions to Oil Painters of America and the art community. His wife, Betty Schmidt, is a past president and an active member of OPA. Her artwork is visible at www.bettyschmidt.com.