Retiring poultry inspector looks back at 54-year career - Gainesville Times

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Retiring poultry inspector looks back at 54-year career

U.S. Department of Agriculture poultry inspector Sam Smith, left, of Clermont, holds a plaque awarded to him by supervisor William McCampbell Thursday, Nov. 30, 2017. Smith is retiring after a 54-year career, most of it at the Fieldale Farms chicken plant in Cornelia. - photo by Carlos Galarza

12012017 CHICKEN 1.jpg — U.S. Department of Agriculture poultry inspector Sam Smith, left, of Clermont, holds a plaque awarded to him by supervisor William McCampbell Thursday, Nov. 30, 2017. Smith is retiring after a 54-year career, most of it at the Fieldale Farms chicken plant in Cornelia. - photo by Carlos Galarza

CORNELIA — Not far removed from his high school days in North Hall, Sam Smith of Clermont began his career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety Inspection Service in 1963 when John F. Kennedy was president and a rock ’n’ roll group from Liverpool, England, invaded the U.S. pop music charts.