The Tangipahoa Parish Council has appointed John “Tree” Smith of Amite to the Board of Commissioners for Hood Memorial Hospital.
The council appointed Smith at its Feb. 14 meeting to fulfill the unexpired term of Dr. Arthur Mauterer, who resigned from the board for personal reasons. The current term will expire January 2024.
Smith retired in January of this year from the Tangipahoa Parish Clerk of Court’s office after 36 years of service under four different administrations. He has pastored Mt. Canaan Baptist Church in Arcola since 1994 and worked as a reserve sergeant with the Amite City Police Department since 2015.
“I am looking forward to helping Tangipahoa Parish continue to move forward as a member of the Hood Memorial Hospital Board of Commissioners,” Smith affirms.
Recognized as Father of the Year by the former Amite-Tangi Digest in 2011, Smith has served as president of the Amite Bitty Basketball Association since 2005 and as a member of the board of directors for Recreation District #3 since 2018.
An alum of Amite High School, Smith attended Copíah-Lincoln Junior College in Wesson, Miss. on a basketball scholarship. He graduated from the Tangipahoa Parish Law Enforcement Training Academy, and in 1997, he earned certification as a deputy clerk of court.
Other members of Hood’s Board of Commissioners include Chairman Charles M. Guzzardo, Vice Chairman Robbie Lee Jr., Secretary Raymond Cutrer, and Randy Bracy.