COL (Ret) Sidney G. Oaksmith
COL (Ret) Sidney G. Oaksmith was born in Annapolis,
Maryland on 30 May 1955, the son of Billy and Grace Oaksmith. After a long
battle with esophageal cancer, Sid went to be with the Lord on 9 October 2014.
He graduated from Annapolis Senior High School in 1973 and
attended Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida where he joined Army
ROTC. COL (Ret) Oaksmith graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and
State University (Virginia Tech) in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science degree in
Forestry. Upon graduation, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Army
in the basic branch of Field Artillery where he served for over 26 years.
COL (Ret) Oaksmith attended the Field Artillery Officer
Basic and Advanced Courses at Fort Sill, Oklahoma and is a graduate of the
Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia and the US Army War College at
Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. He also graduated from Airborne, Air Assault,
and Ranger Schools.
His assignments include two tours in the Federal Republic
of Germany with the 75th Field Artillery Command and 56th
Field Artillery Command and assignment to the 101st ABN Division. He
served in both Operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM as a Brigade Fire
Support Officer for 1st Brigade, 101st ABN Division
(AASLT). COL (Ret) Oaksmith has also served as a Political-Military Planner,
Directorate for Strategic Plans and Policy (J5), Office of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, Washington, DC. His commands include command of 8-inch and Pershing II
Missile batteries in the Federal Republic of Germany, command of the 6th
Battalion, 37th Field Artillery (MLRS) in the Republic of Korea, and
command of the 17th Field Artillery Brigade in Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
He also served as the Director of the Commander’s Action Group with the US
Central Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.
His awards include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal,
Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation
Medal, and Army Achievement Medal.
Upon retiring from the Army, Sidney began his civilian
career as a business developer for L-3 MPRI National Group in Alexandria,
Virginia. He later went on to be Vice President of Operations for L-3 MPRI
Training Technology Group (TTG) in Columbia, Maryland. He left the defense
contracting world, and went to work for First Command Financial Services in
Annapolis, Maryland where he could enjoy life and help people achieve financial
peace of mind.
He loved his Alma Mater, Virginia Tech, and his band of
brothers at the German Club. He was a devout Christian, who had great faith in
God. He had a great love of country and those he had the pleasure of serving
with during his long career. As he said in one of his speeches, “There is no
greater love I have except love of God and family, than love of each one of
you.”
Sidney Oaksmith is survived by his wife and high school
sweetheart of 37 year, Rebecca Smyth Oaksmith. They have two daughters,
Gretchen Oaksmith Butler and Lindsay Oaksmith O’Donnell, who are married to Ben
Butler and Adam O’Donnell. He has four grandchildren, Joshua Butler, Ashley
Butler, Payton O’Donnell, and Austin O’Donnell. He is also survived by his
sister Barbara Smith (Jim), brother Gene Oaksmith (Claudia), and sister Lyn
Englert (Bob) and his mother-in-law Peg Smyth, brother-in-law Jeff Smyth (Myra)
and sister-in-law Corry Atwell (Steve), as well as numerous nieces, nephews,
and cousins. Sidney is preceded in death by his parents, Billy and Grace
Oaksmith, his father-in-law Ken Smyth, and his brother-in-law Peter Smyth.
The family is working to set up a scholarship fund in his memory.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the scholarship fund. Information
will be posted to www.fcef.com/scholarships/
once the fund is established.
For more information on memorial services for my dad, visit the Memorial Services for Dad blog post.
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