Thomas Allen Schmick's Obituary
Tom Schmick died on May 23, 2024, in Tallahassee. Born in 1943 to Justin Allen and Kathryn Peebles Schmick in Cincinnati, he grew up there, as well as Chicago and Delaware, Ohio. Tom showed exceptional talent in both science and music. He attended Case Western Reserve University and graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University; earned a Masters in Physics from Miami University (Ohio); and came to FSU to pursue his PhD.
From an early age he played saxophone and flute in school bands and orchestras, rock bands, marching/military bands, and especially jazz bands. It was music that drew him away from his doctoral studies. He formed the Big Bend Jass Band and turned the basement of the Pastime Bar on Tennessee Street into a music venue for talented local bands, including his own. Its popularity led to additional music clubs, culminating in Tommy’s Deep South Music Hall, which hosted live original music by local, regional, and even national acts through the ‘70’s and ‘80’s.
Tom’s second passion was motorcycles. He made multiple cross-country trips and was never without at least one bike.
Tom left Tallahassee and the music business in the 1980s. He returned to Ohio and started the first of several computer businesses. He authored a software product, Ark Software, for humane societies and animal shelters, which has been used throughout North America. He returned to Tallahassee in 2010 and retired soon after.
Tom is predeceased by his parents and sister, Caroline Buckingham. He survived by his wife, Julia Zimmerman; son and daughter-in-law, John Schmick and Alexandria Matos and grandson, Alister; and brother, Raymond Schmick.
Family and friends will gather to privately to celebrate Tom’s life on June 16th. Memorial gifts are welcomed by Big Bend Hospice or Second Harvest of the Big Bend.
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