Kirk Smick '66, OD '67 Named Fourth Recipient of Kamelia Massih Prize for a Distinguished Optometrist

Pacific University alumnus Kirk Smick '66, OD '67 has been named the fourth recipient of the Kamelia Massih Prize for a Distinguished Optometrist. He received the award May 17 at Pacific University's graduate commencement ceremony.

The honor is named after the late Kamelia Massih, a 1985 Pacific University College of Optometry alumna who passed away in March 2010 following a three-year battle with cancer. 

Massih served her patients and members of her community with a level of compassion and care that exemplifies Pacific University College of Optometry alumni. 

Smick is a leading optometric physician, businessman, lecturer and author who has made a significant and lasting impression on his profession.

"On days like this I am reminded how, much of our future, and much of what happens to us, is the direct result of our making the right decision at the right time," Smick told the graduates. "Just like I made the right decision to attend Pacific University 50 years ago, you all have made the same right decision, and it will pay rewards the rest of your life. Continue to make the right decisions and you'll go a long ways."

An early advocate of the medically-oriented and culturally diverse optometric practice, he is an owner and the chief of Optometry Services at Clayton Eye Center in Morrow, Ga., and its satellite office in Griffin, Ga., the Spalding Eye Care Center.

Founded by Dr. Smick in 1974, the practice employs 107 including four ophthalmologists and seven optometrists. Clayton Eye Center features an on-site eye surgery center and a full-service optical facility. The firm has a lengthy history of clinical research studies & trials for ophthalmic medications and devices, and is nationally recognized for its research efforts. 

Smick served in the U.S. Army for five years, retiring as a colonel, before launching the Clayton Eye Center. He was named a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry in 1970. 

A member of the American Optometric Association, he has served on and chaired numerous committees, including the organization’s Continuing Education Committee.

Smick is also a member of the Georgia Optometric Association and has held every elected position in that organization, including a term as president in 1981.He was appointed to the Georgia State Board of Examiners in Optometry in 1982, serving for 10 years, including three as its president.

Dr. Smick is as a technical advisor to many companies in the ophthalmic industry and has helped pioneer several visual advances, including bifocal contact lenses. He is an advisory board member at Allergan, AMO, Arctic Dx, Bausch + Lomb, Essilor, Humana Insurance, Merck, Signet Armorlite and Transitions Optical. He is an emeritus member of the several other organizations, includig the KODAK Lenses Advisory Board, ad currently chairs the International Vision Expo Conference Advisory Board.

Smick is a frequent lecturer both in the U.S. and abroad, and the author of numerous journal articles. He was honored by the Georgia Optometric Association as the Georgia Optometrist of the Year in 1981. 

Active in his local community, he has served as president of the Clayton County Chamber of Commerce and the Atlanta Airport Rotary Club, and chaired the Clayton County Heart Association’s Annual Ball. Smick has also served as a member of the board of directors of the American Diabetes Association, Georgia Chapter. He is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta, a prestigious one-year community service program, and has worked as county coordinator in two gubernatorial campaigns, and served as a member of Senator Mack Mattingly’s Military Academy Selection Committee. 

Smick and his wife Judi have three grown children and reside in Highlands, N.C.

Kamelia Massih Prize for a Distinguished Optometrist Recipients

2011 - James H. Berglund, OD '60

2012 - Stanley J. Yamane, '65, OD '66

2013 - Dori M. Carlson '88, OD '89

2014 - Kirk L. Smick, '66, OD '67

Saturday, May 17, 2014