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Submitted: 6/30/23 • Approved: 7/4/23 • Last Updated: 7/7/23 • R1490645-G0-S3
October 25, 1940 - May 29, 2023
*Obituary
Nelson-Berna Funeral Home
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Neil Martin Schmitt passed away on Monday, May 29, 2023. He was born October 25, 1940 in Pekin, IL to Henrietta and Harold Schmitt. He grew up in Peoria, IL but lived most of his life in Fayetteville, AR. Neil also considered his aunt and uncle, Loretta and Milton Brubaker, surrogate parents as they were very instrumental in his upbringing and opportunity for higher education.
In 1963 Neil married Carolyn Fay Lierly and graduated from the University of Arkansas with a degree in Electrical Engineering, followed quickly by his master’s degree in 1964. He received his doctorate degree from Southern Methodist University in 1969. After service in the military, he worked in Dallas at IBM as a system engineer and then at Texas Instruments developing military radar systems.
In 1970, he was hired as an Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Arkansas. He also spent time at the Baylor College of Medicine as a post doc in Cardiovascular systems. After serving as the department head for Electrical Engineering, he was named Dean of the College of Engineering in 1983. He served in that position until 1996. He returned to serve as interim dean from 2001-2002.
As dean, he led the college through a paradigm shift. He oversaw the design and construction of the Bell Engineering Center; he increased research funding a hundredfold and he led the transformation of an abandoned factory turning it into the nationally known Engineering Research Center.
Neil was also an active and dedicated member of our local community. He was a longtime member of many civic organizations. During his research into bio-medical engineering, he studied at our local hospitals and Neil identified a need for better local ambulance capabilities. To help address this need, he helped develop our current ambulance 911 and EMS response systems and even received EMT certification and served as a paramedic in the fledgling CEMS.
While successful in his career, his greatest passion was to serve his Lord and live out his faith. He served as a senior leader at UBC and Fellowship Bible Church for over a combined 50 years. Neil especially enjoyed mentoring young men and married couples, as well as participating in many mission trips.
Neil and his wife, Carolyn, were avid travelers and they visited dozens of locations on 6 different continents. Neil and Carolyn’s favorite place was Hawaii, where they often took their family for special times in the South Pacific.
Neil was proceeded in death by his parents Harold and Henrietta Schmitt, his stepmother Nora Schmitt and his brother Dean Schmitt. He is survived by his wife of sixty years Carolyn Schmitt, his daughter Caryn Finney and her husband Steve; their family, Trevor, Spencer, Caleb and his fiancé Julia Rogers; his son Robert Schmitt and his wife Trisha; their family, Jackson, Neil, Sydney and Samantha.
Visitation will be held at Nelson Berna Funeral Home in Fayetteville, AR on Thursday, June 1 from 5:00-7:00 pm. Memorial service will be held on Friday June 2 at 1:00 pm at Fayetteville Fellowship Bible Church.
Memorials can be made to the Salvation Army, https://give.salvationarmyusa.org/give/164006/? or to the Fellowship Bible Disaster Relief Fund, 3447 Arkansas 112, Fayetteville, AR, 72704.
Contributed on 6/30/23 by judyfrog
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Record #: 1490645