It is with great sadness that we mourn the loss of longtime PPS member Roland Smith, a past president of the PPS, and a two-time winner of the Ed Brandt Service Award for outstanding service.  Roland was a great benefit to all members, and remained an active photographer and explorer of the Pacific Northwest right up to his unexpected, but peaceful passing last month.

Below, we have included Jim Baker’s memorial to Roland:

Roland E. Smith Ph.D, APSA
Gresham, Oregon

Roland Smith died on August 4, 2014 at his home in Gresham, Oregon at the age of 90 years.  Roland was a skilled photographer and teacher who helped many in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest perfect their photographic skills.    He was a life long educator having taught at Enterprise, Oregon High School, Portland State University, the University of Oregon and retiring from Texas Tech University as a professor of Political Science.  He earned his masters in history and doctorate in Political Science from the University of Oregon.

He served in World War II with the United States Army in Europe and the Aleutian islands.

He was a passionate photographer with a particular skill in teaching his craft to others.  He was a founding member in 1989 of the Columbia Gorge Camera Club and was a long time member of the Portland Photographic Society.  He served in nearly every office in both groups. He was a fixture at the Multnomah County photo exhibition  which is sponsored by the Portland Photographic Society.  In  2011 he was made a life member of the Columbia Gorge Camera Club and in 2013 he was made a life member in the Portland Photographic Society for his many contributions to each club.

He joined PSA in January 1983 and was elected Associate in 1998.  He was a member of PSA Cascade Chapter and was a member of the founding committee of their Cascade Small Print Exhibition.  He was a regular exhibitor in his local clubs  and was in demand as an exhibition judge for both club and international exhibitions.  He was scheduled to judge at the Western Washington State Fair at the time of his death.

His greatest pleasure came with photo field trips.  He participated in and planned trips to all parts of the Pacific Northwest but was fondest of trips to the wheat growing areas of eastern Oregon and Washington.  He had just finished a trip to photograph the milky way and was planning a trip to the Palouse region of eastern Washington at his death.

James Baker, FPSA, EPSA

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Here are some images from Roland’s gallery on the PPS web page: