MEET ALL THE CANDIDATES, SPUR APRIL 21, JAYTON APRIL 22
On a recent day I met up with Spur resident—and retired city codes compliance officer—John Schmidt in the middle of doing one of his favorite things.
Checking out books from the library.
The man who’s primed to take the helm of our city goes through a handful of novels and nonfiction titles in a given week. A dedicated member of the Spur library board, Schmidt took the step recently to pursue an added public service when five-time incumbent Mayor Louise Jones announced she wouldn’t run again.
Schmidt considers Spur his home, though he wasn’t born here. As a youngster from central Texas he came to live with relatives after drought drove his father out of the cattle business in the late 1950s (Texans recall this extended rainless stretch as what novelist Elmer Kelton titled “The Time It Never Rained”).
He graduated with Spur High School’s class of 1962 and took off for the Fort Worth area, which was growing into a significant hub for the aircraft industry in North Texas— second only to California in production. General Dynamics’ Plant 4, which later became Lockheed Martin’s Air Force Plant 4, was a major manufacturer of aircraft, including the B-58 Hustler and the F-111.
For someone with a technical bent, the region offered an upward career path. After gaining some college credits, Schmidt hired on. “I was a young, shy boy when I started working at Lockheed,” he said. But one of the bosses spotted potential. “He took notice of me one day wearing a tie, and he figured I must have some college education.”
Schmidt was sent after regular hours to Elements of Supervision School for six months, and afterward, in February 1967 was promoted to supervisor—the youngest ever in General Dynamics’ history at the time. Schmidt stayed with the company for four decades, as aircrafter, liaison engineer and safety engineer.
By then, living in nearby Weatherford, he’d married Valene. Their family grew to add a son and a daughter. Widowed in 2020 after returning to Spur (and living in the city’s oldest standing house, on Willard Avenue), John still spends time with them and with his granddaughter and grandson. Here in Spur, he is active in the Masonic Lodge and its educational support, and he also enjoys recreational evenings of bunco and dinner
for solving engineering problems, and his years of investigating and preventing on-the-job accidents, to work in Spur helping residents avoid and prevent violations of property codes. He served in that capacity during the city’s mini-boom in tiny houses beginning when Steve
That experience has helped form his own vision for the position.
Properly functioning water, sewer and gas systems, he understands, are the key to gaining and retaining residents and building a small city’s population. In his candidate questionnaire submitted to The Texas Spur this week, he said he expects to “explore and apply for grants that will help with the cost of upgrades and maintenance.”
Schmidt also described his former responsibilities as codes compliance officer as “maintaining a wholesome look and upkeep of all property.”
Schmidt considered this his present goal even before learning what the outlook of his opponent, former police chief Billy Spears, would have been. Spears conceded the race last week, notifying The Texas Spur of his intention to withdraw.
What matters most to Schmidt, in this third phase of service that he’s about to inherit, is “quality of life in a small municipality, sustaining a quality water system for the city.”
Looks to us like we’ll be electing the right leader for that job. As for other challenges facing the City of Spur, residents will have a chance to talk with John Schmidt at the Meet the Candidates evening at the Dickens County Spur Public Library coming up Monday night, April 21 (see details, page 1 and page 3).
Candidates for Spur ISD school board, and for other municipal races in Spur and Dickens, will also be on hand. Take advantage of this face-to-face opportunity to get to know all of your fellow citizens who are unselfishly offering their time and talents to serve your community.
