Freedom Old Home Week 2024 Grand Marshal

Bob was born and raised in St. Paul Minnesota and as a youth was very involved with his family in the Lutheran Church, which helped lead him to Freedom. He is a proud graduate of St. Olaf College, where in 1953 he he obtained his degree in Business and Economics. He married Ruth, a nurse, in 1954. Bob was drafted into the army in 1956 . He and Ruth spent two years at Ft. Chaffee in Arkansas then moved to Neenah, Wisconsin where Bob started his forty-year career working for Marathon Corp. In 1969 the company moved him to Danbury CT where Bob met and became friends with Dallas Fuller. 

After many years of carpooling and listening to Dallas’s stories about his vacations in Freedom, Bob and Ruth decided to check the town out. Camp Calumet soon became their favorite camping destination. Dallas then convinced the Smarts to become his neighbor on Broad Bay. In the summer of 1998, Bob and Ruth bought an old camp on North Broad Bay Road. Along with the help of Bob Amico, who Bob first met at an Old Home Week Lawn Party, the home was rebuilt it into a comfortable home it is today. The Smarts moved to Freedom full time in 1998.

They quickly became involved in the Freedom community, in part by choice, but with a bit friendly persuasion. He and Ruth joined joined the First Christian Church of Freedom in 2000 and soon thereafter Velma Hormel convinced the new guy on the block to be the church president, a position he held for five years. In addition to focusing on increasing the church’s membership, Bob helped organize the Thanksgiving Dinner. His last year as president coincided with FCCF’s 150th anniversary for which Bob planned a large celebration. He also wrote a history of the church, was named the official church historian, and helped get the church on the NH Historic Registry. Bob created the props used by FCCF’s summer theater camp, designed the OHW floats entered by the camp. With the help of family members, Bob built the beautiful manger scene that continues to grace the church front lawn during the holiday season and brings so much joy to the young and old in Freedom. 

Bob’s work on behalf of the Church caught the attention of others in town, and Margie Amico asked him to serve as the Program Director for the Community Club. He subsequently became Club President and was instrumental in moving the annual Craft Fair during OHW to the school gym, which allowed it to increase in size. He also replaced the Club’s old heavy tables with new, lighter tables that the club still uses. 

Bob was a founding member of the Freedom Heritage Commission established in 2009, and served as its secretary. After the town road agents found a large boulder during a project, Bob and his colleagues on the Commision designed a bronze plaque to go on the boulder that highlights the buildings and structures on School House Hill. The Commission has subsequently installed plaques on quite a few historic buildings in town.

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Bob’s love for Lake Life on Ossipee led him to prepare the Smart Report, which provided the town important information about Ossipee Lake happenings, including the state of the dam and date of ice in and ice out. Bob shares his love for Freedom with his three children Carolyn, Steve and Susan and ten grandchildren, who are frequent visitors to Freedom. His five great-grandchildren live in Oregon and Connecticut. We were fortunate to interview Bob in his beautiful home with incredible views of the Lake that he has worked so hard to help preserve. 

For all of his contributions that have bettered our community, the Freedom Old Home Week Association is honored to recognize Bob Smart as this year’s FOHW Grand Marshal!