A private Celebration of Life service for Dr. Michael Edwin Schmidt, 58, of Lawrenceville, will be held for the immediate family with Senior Pastor Don Drawdy officiating.
Mike was called away to his heavenly home to be with Jesus Monday, March 7, 2022.
Born July 7, 1963, in Lincoln, Nebraska, he was the son of the late Adolf Edwin Schmidt and Beverly Ann Mason Smith and bonus father, Hoke C. Smith of Clarkesville and grandson of the late paternal grandparents Adolf and Hertha Schmidt and the late maternal grandparents Stanley Louis and Annabelle Marie Mason.
Mike graduated from Brookwood High School in Snellville its inaugural year in 1982 after three years at Parkview High in Lilburn. When not performing amazing tricks on a skateboard or buried in a book, Mike found joy in music, first mastering the trumpet, then an entire array of instruments. If it was brass, he could play it! Mike marched in Chattahoochee Sound Association, Spirit of Atlanta, and North Star Drum and Bugle Corps after graduation. His musical talents included roles as a horn soloist for the Liberty University Marching Band, a trumpet soloist for Thomas Road Baptist Church, and performances in churches, nursing homes, and community events all across the country. He released music albums The Lord’s Horns (2002), Exquisite (2002), Spirit (2007), Redemption (2011), and Complete (2011), and was featured on Cabin Creek Gospel Volume 17 by Cabin Creek Records.
Mike had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Proving no subject was off limits and no goal was unobtainable, he held multiple degrees in higher education including Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Leadership - Behavioral Health from Grand Canyon University, Master of Divinity from Liberty University, Master of Arts and Religion from Liberty University, Master of Religious Education from Liberty University, Doctor of Ministry in Pastoral Counseling from Liberty University School of Divinity, Doctor of Biblical Education and Master of Biblical Education from Gwinnett - Hall Baptist Theological Seminary, bachelor’s Degree (B.A.) from Florida Bible College where he was a Dean's List Student for Multiple Semesters and he earned a bachelor’s degree (B.S.) from Point University.
Not a man to rest on his laurels, Mike spent his career devoted to working in ministries to serve the Lord in spreading the gospel and helping the people he was entrusted to counsel. He worked for just under ten years as a pastoral counselor at Brookwood Counseling Center specializing in incarceration, substance abuse, PTSD, and intellectual handicap disabilities. He worked for over 41 years as a pastoral counselor and professional trumpet soloist at Trumpet of the Lord Ministries, a ministry that Mike founded. He also served four years as a Corporal for the Georgia Department of Corrections and held the position as pulpit supply preacher for Florida Bible College and Point University.
Mike was passionate about serving his community. He was a beloved basketball coach for special needs kids and was an avid supporter of The Muscular Dystrophy Association. Mike designed and grew fabulous gardens, specializing in his beloved roses. Mike loved to spend time with his family, especially his grandson, Nathan. No one was better at keeping in touch; Mike maintained active relationships with even the most distant family and kept his friends close, most of whom he had known since childhood. Mike loved a good debate. He knew the Star Wars universe better than most of the people who produced it. He never met a pinball machine he could not whip, and never passed up a ride on a roller coaster. An enthusiastic teacher, counselor, and musician, he was known for his quick wit, his infectious laugh, and his desire to help. Mike always loved being the loudest and highest pitched horn player. As Mike always said, "Mikey Schmidt plays notes so high on a trumpet that alien spy missions on the government are disrupted." We just know that God was preparing him for the heavenly orchestra.
Survivors include his wife, Patricia J. Schmidt; daughter, Emily Ann Schmidt; son-in-law Carlos Ruiz; grandson, Ian Nathaniel Ruiz; mother, Beverly Ann (Schmidt) Smith; bonus father, Hoke C. Smith; sister, Deborah Schmidt Taylor and brother-in-law, James Taylor; brother, Stanley Adolf Schmidt; bonus sister, Holly Tullis; bonus brother, Andy H. Smith and sister-in-law, Lea; mother-in- law, Carol Ann Ruddick; sister-in-law, Victoria Werner; brother-in-law, James Ruddick and his wife Janet; brother- in-law, Douglas Ruddick; sister-in-law, Tina Spilde and her husband, Hans; sister-in-law, Kendra Miller and her husband, Shane; aunt, Sandra Pelletier; aunt, Donna Mason; uncle, Paul Rosetter; aunt, Sandra Grasruck; cousin, Peter Grasruck; cousin, Chris Grasruck; and numerous nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews, and second cousins.
Per his wish, he will be cremated. In lieu of flowers, please submit a donation in Michael's name to either The Gideons International, P.O. Box 1855, Clarkesville, GA 30523 or to The Muscular Dystrophy Association, WEB P.O. Box 97075, Washington, DC 20090-7075.