Gerald Schmidt was a good man. Really nothing else needs to
be said. Gerald was also a man of few words and he would probably agree. Even
though in his usual awe shucks, humbleness he might be a little embarrassed at
the attention. But as I go on for a much longer and wordier tribute, he would
also probably smile and say that was par for the course with me.
Last week Jennifer and I attended the memorial service for
Gerald Schmidt at the Freeport Presbyterian Church. As I soaked in the
wonderful service, I had many memories and thoughts of Gerald go through my
head. Most of all I marveled at how someone who I had the privilege of being
around for such a relatively short time could have had such a big impact on my
life.
In November of 1995 Jennifer and I got married and we moved
to Harper County where I was the Extension Ag Agent. Jennifer worked as a horse
trainer before we got married and her old boss told her to look Gerald up when
we got settled in. At first she did some day work for him but soon Gerald asked
her to be his herdsman. Little did I know that her job would change me so
profoundly.
Gerald Schmidt was like few men I had ever met. Without a
doubt he was one of the most humble, hardest working, most unassuming people
you could ever meet. He treated human and animal alike, with kind actions and
deep respect. He had a calm, quiet demeanor that drew you in and made you feel
good. Gerald made sure that the new, green County Agent attended all the right
events and I looked forward to going to them with him.
The first thing most people noticed about Gerald was his
honesty and integrity. Gerald had some of the best Angus cattle I have ever
been around, but his sale catalogs were legendary and the descriptions of his cattle
were one of a kind. I remember one bull in particular. Gerald described his
best attributes very well, but at the end of the description he mentioned that
if your fences were not very good you probably did not want this bull. I have
never seen statements like that in any other sale catalog anywhere else, but
Gerald did not want anyone thinking he was anything but straight forward and
honest. We sure could use more people like that in this world.
I live each day trying to emulate that same honesty and integrity.
However, the one lesson from Gerald that had the biggest impact on my life was
the way he treated his livestock. Gerald treated his animals with a quiet
respect and was always calm when handling them. I must admit that I am a bit of
a hot head and very impatient when it comes to animals, so I marveled at how
Gerald worked cattle. I was also impressed with how gentle his stock was and
then the light went off in my head.
Livestock are a reflection of how they are treated. Treat
them with gentleness and they will seldom get worked up. Then came my biggest
revelation, be patient, quiet and move calmly and you will get done so much
faster than “ramming and jamming”. The only stories I ever heard of Gerald
showing any displeasure was when it came to someone mishandling his cattle.
Hitting one of Gerald’s cows was not something you wanted to do.
He used the same approach when it came to dealing with
people too. He drew others in because they knew they would be treated with
kindness and respect. Gerald Schmidt was a man others wanted to be around
because he made them feel good. You couldn’t spend a day around him without
feeling better about yourself. That is a very rare quality.
There are very few days I do not think of Gerald,
particularly when I am working with my cattle. I am absolutely convinced that
the world would be a much better place if we had more people like Gerald in it.
I just hope that I live my life each day with at least a small portion of the
integrity, honesty, humbleness, humility and respect that Gerald showed each
person and animal he came into contact with each day. In the end I must say I
am a much better person for knowing Gerald and for that I am very grateful.
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