WILLIAM M. “MIKE” SMITH, CLASS OF 1967, arrived at Boys Town on September 27, 1963 from Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Smith, at age 5, along with his three siblings was abandoned by his family in South Bend, Indiana.  They were eventually placed in the St. Vincent Villa Catholic Orphanage in Fort Wayne, Indiana and lived there until they “aged” out after completing the 8th Grade.  After a four month stint in a Fort Wayne juvenile transitional facility, Smith was accepted at Boys Town.  While at Boys Town he took advantage of the excellent academic program offered at that time and learned the skills that would carry him through life.  He participated in the Boys Town scouting program where he learned citizenship skills and the ability to be part of a team.  That experience would become part of his success in life after he graduated from Boys Town. 
 

While Smith had several scholarship opportunities, he chose to go to work so that he could become financially independent and went to work as an assistant buyer with the Nieman Marcus store in Dallas.  While in Dallas he started school but that had to be put on hold because of a tumor that was discovered near his eye.  It was at that time he received a draft notice for the Army and, considering his options, he immediately joined the Navy.
 

In the Navy, Smith was assigned to the Guided Missile Destroyer, USS Sterett, DLG-31, where he would spend over two years serving off the coast of Vietnam.  Leaving the Navy, with an honorable discharge, he moved to Iowa where he continued his education and started a family.  In 1975 he was named Vice President of Procurement for a local development company in Iowa who built around 200 homes per year.   
      
In 1976, Smith decided to join the Iowa Army National Guard where he eventually took a position in procurement and became a Contracting Officer, with the local United States Property & Fiscal Office for Iowa.  Twelve years later, he left the Army Guard and accepted a position with Boeing as a Senior Contracts Manager on the Program Support Communications Network, a NASA prime contractor at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where he worked for 8 years; and another 5 years on the Reserve Component Automation Systems contract in Washington D.C. where he oversaw the procurement of over $900 million in hardware for the Guard and Reserve. Smith became acquainted with Joel Rhoades, founder of Skyline-Unltd., Inc., who was, at the time, the Telecommunications Branch Chief of the National Guard Bureau’s Readiness Center. In 2001 he assisted Joel with some of the administrative start-up of Skyline Unltd., Inc.  Their continued relationship later led to his position, in 2008, as a Skyline Vice President, Group Manager, Multiple Awards Schedules the handling and managing of major contracts throughout the U.S. and around the world.  In his spare time he supported Veteran-centric, civic organizations and mentored youth to help them have a better future.
 

While living in Northern Virginia, Mike became involved with the Boys Town National Alumni Association and, in 2007, was elected to the Board of Directors representing Region 4 where he served until 2011.  During that time he was the Chairman of the Veterans Memorial Committee and led the effort to raise over $30,000 from alumni and friends to expand the Alumni Veterans Memorial to include the names of those killed in action or who died while serving in uniform and to refurbish the original Veterans Memorial.  This project was completed in just over six months and was dedicated during the 2011 National Convention.  In 2014, Smith became the first Boys Town alumnus to sit on the board of one of Boys Town’s satellite campuses when he was elected to the Board of Directors for Boys Town of Washington D.C.  He also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Boys Town National Alumni Association Scholarship Fund.
 

Smith is the father of six children and nine grandchildren.  Sadly, one of his sons passed away several years ago.  He went into semi-retirement this year, and along with his wife Cindy have moved to their lakeside home in Lakeview, Arkansas where they plan to do a lot of fishing and spend a great amount of time with their grandchildren and extended family.  Smith is a member of the USS Sterett Association and remains in touch with shipmates from the Vietnam era.  He is a Lifetime Member of the Boys Town National Alumni Association.

William Michael Smith, Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Arrived at Boys Town September 27, 1963.  Academic Course.  Knights of the Altar 1; Pep Club 2; Scouting 1-2-3-4.