Jim Smith took me to breakfast.

We’d worked together for a while. Him at Steel City, Inc. Me at The Patriot-News. We’d talked about tubes and racks and hockey and family and coaching and newspapers and such.

One winter day, when Jim traveled through Harrisburg, we met at the office before sunrise and went to breakfast. He drove. We ate. We talked. He dropped me back at the office and headed west towards home.

Classic Jim. He took the time to make the time to sit across a table and know me better.

Jim’s personal touch, his warmth for and interest in his fellow human beings, are his hallmarks. They’re why he’ll be sorely missed in our industry and why he’ll flourish in his new role.

Allow me to introduce you to Jim Smith. A nicer guy you’ll never meet. – Dan Christ, Secretary-Treasurer

In February 1991, Jim Smith departed a teaching and coaching career to join the team at Steel City Corp. in Youngstown, Ohio. The notable career change was motivated by Jim’s passion for newspapers, developed as a child reading and delivering The (Canton) Repository in his hometown, Canton, Ohio. (Home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame…more about that later!)

Managing a territory that encompassed a third of the United States, Jim and his family were relocated to Wisconsin where Jim began his efforts in the Midwest, Northern Plains and Pacific Northwest on behalf of Steel City Corp. Support from his family, teammates in Youngstown and publishing clients across the territory were instrumental in Jim’s development in the business.

Upon the retirement of his predecessor, Lee Rouse, Jim became the National Sales Manager and was responsible for the sales, marketing efforts and operations of the “Newspaper Division” at Steel City Corp.

During Lee and Jim’s tenures, Steel City Corp. earned the prestigious “President’s Award” recognition from the P.A.G.E. Cooperative repeatedly. The award recognized the P.A.G.E. supplier servicing the largest number of cooperative members.

Using his teaching and coaching background, Jim determined that in addition to providing tangible supplies to publishers and distributors, sharing successful ideas and concepts used by clients would be beneficial to all concerned. The idea-sharing platform became a primary element of Steel City Corp.’s networking with their customers.

The “Been There Saw This” idea page at the Steel City Corp. website continues to experience high traffic volume and their “CIRC TIMES” emailed newsletter earns impressive analytics as well.

Collaborative efforts with several newspaper partners: Aaron Kotarek (Oahu Publications) Mark Johnson (Dow Jones) and Matthew Wolcanski (Gannett) led to the creation of the “exPRESSly Speaking” and “The Coffee Break Conference Series” podcasts and additional networking opportunities.

Unquestionably, one of Jim’s most cherished rewards during the Steel City Corp. “journey” has been the opportunity to meet people in the industry. The commitment they exhibit daily to their profession has served as motivation for him.

Additionally, because of his travel experiences, Jim was fortunate to meet people from various walks of life across the U.S. and Canada and appreciated that as he would tell his family and groups in attendance at his public speaking engagements, “everybody has a story, you just have to ask them to tell it.”

A proud member and supporter of I-SCMA, Jim recognizes the vast importance of industry networking associations and salutes the past, present and future I-SCMA membership and leadership for their efforts on behalf of their peers and their profession.

Recently, Jim accepted the position of Business Development Manager-Hall of Fame Relations, at the Professional Football Hall of Fame in Canton. A true homecoming for Jim as he grew up within walking distance of “The Hall” and has been a volunteer at the museum for several years.

In his new role, Jim will connect Hall of Famers with community enterprises and create the “Gold Jacket Spotlight” content for the website.

Jim will continue to serve Steel City Corp. as an Advisor and will provide content to the platforms their clients are accustomed to viewing.

Looking forward to seeing each of you at the Pro Football Hall of Fame soon!