Randy Smith
I never thought this day would come. The day when I stop doing everything and completely retire. But it has. This is my last column for Chattanoogan.com. I have spent 46 years as a broadcaster, writer and journalist. I have reached all my career goals and won several major awards, but it's time to quit. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Chattanooga.
I came to this city in 1975, fresh out of Middle Tennessee State University. Even though I had several opportunities to leave I chose to remain here.....in the Scenic City.
My wife Shelia and I have raised our children here, and this fall we will welcome our fifth grandchild into the world. I can't think of any place in the world I would rather live than right here. I sincerely hope that our children, Christi and Davey decide to remain here, but Shelia and I must leave for a while.
A unique opportunity has been sent my way; an opportunity that could set up my family financially for many years to come. Shelia and I have decided to move to just outside of Opp, Alabama and raise camels. There is a huge demand for them especially overseas. For every camel we sell, we retain $2,000. And the chances of raising at least one hundred or more in a year are very good. We simply have to make an initial investment of $100,000 for 10 male and 10 female adult camels. They will be delivered to our new home near Opp in a couple of weeks.
I know this is very sudden, but opportunities like this one don't come around often. At first, they wanted us to move to Cairo, Egypt, but we said no. We wanted to stay here in the United States. The camel company finally agreed to allow us to live in the south and raise our camels, and that made us very happy. Shelia will also be leaving her job as a guidance counselor at LFO High School and she is really looking forward to this next great adventure.
We will be visiting here quite often to see our grandkids, and we look forward to seeing our many friends as often as possible. By the way if you would like to invest in raising camels, let me know I can set you up with the right people. I never thought raising camels could be so lucrative but it apparently is. I did discover that when dealing with camels regularly, you must wear a face protector because they're sometimes bad to bite. The folks at the camel company showed us pictures of other people who raised camels, with missing ears and noses. I also heard they're bad to spit.
Well it's goodbye for now, and I will keep everyone posted when we get to Opp and begin raising our camels. Oh and by the way...
HAPPY APRILS FOOLS' DAY!!!!!!!
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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.
His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.
He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.
In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.
He can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com