Always

Kirk Smith, president of The Adsmith, has over 35 years of working experience in advertising, graphic design and marketing. His interest grew from a youth surrounded by the business of “creating” — where as a child he would try to draw cartoons or help with ad “paste-up” alongside his father, an accomplished artist, cartoonist and the entrepreneur who created The Adsmith.

Kirk graduated from the University of Georgia where he majored in Graphic Design while working part-time at the company’s original downtown Athens office. Upon graduation, he began working at the agency full-time as an art director, eventually becoming a partner and now president of the firm. During his tenure, the agency’s work has been honored by Communication Arts, Print’s Regional Design Annual, Adweek, the Telly Awards, Addy Awards, Outdoor Advertising Association, Cooperative Communications Council, NRECA, the National Bank Marketing Association and many more.

A native of Athens, Kirk has always believed in doing what he could to help the community and area non-profit organizations. His primary focus in recent years has been as an advocate for people living with cancer, serving on the board of The Cancer Foundation and serving on the Committee for the Free to Breathe 5K. He was recently honored with both the PPD Hero award and the Hero of Hope award from the National Lung Cancer Research Foundation for his work raising money for lung cancer research as well as advocating for the importance of clinical trials. He has also volunteered on patient advocacy committees for Pfizer Pharmaceutical and was a guest panelist for Novartis Pharmaceutical as an advocate for lung cancer patients.

During his career, he has also served as a Mentor to the same young man for almost three decades, and has loaned his leadership skills to the board of the Clarke County Mentor Program, including two terms as president of the steering committee and several terms on the executive committee. Kirk is a graduate of both Leadership Athens and Leadership Georgia and has served a term on the Board of Directors of the Athens Area Chamber of Commerce. He was Co-Director (along with his wife, Jayne) of the Winter Games of the Georgia Special Olympics when they were held in Athens, and served as publicity director for the same event the two years prior.

In recognition of his community involvement, he was chosen as a “Community Hero” to carry the Olympic Torch during it’s route to the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta (an honor he shared with both his wife and father). He was also awarded the Advertising Federation’s Silver Medal for creative achievement and community involvement, was a finalist for the Athens Area Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Person of the Year and recognized by the Athens Banner-Herald as a “Super Citizen.”

Kirk lives in Athens with his wife, Jayne and dog, Maximus. He is an avid runner, hiker, cyclist, mountain biker, Dawg fan, and advocate for those most vulnerable.

Raised in coastal Georgia, Scott began drawing pictures at a young age and hasn’t stopped. As a teenager he created designs and color separations for silk screening, buried his head in comic books and learned about lettering in a local sign shop. Scott earned his BFA from the University of Georgia and later taught graphic design there for 10 years. For over 25 years at The Adsmith he’s enjoyed creating solutions that help clients achieve their goals. Scott lives in Watkinsville with his wife, Allison, Daffodil the cat, and Diana the corgi. In his free time he enjoys drawing, painting, and attending his daughter’s dance performances at The University of Georgia.

If anyone knows design, it’s Harold Dean. He’s been cranking out print materials and winning awards for our friends at the UGA Athletic Association, among others, for as long as we can remember. As a seasoned Adsmith Designer, he makes up 1/3 of the tried-and-true trio, complete with Scott and Kirk. When Harold’s not at work, he enjoys a good old-fashioned game of football or basketball.

Matt, one of our most dedicated Jittery Joe’s Coffee addicts, brings over fifteen years of web development experience. He’s got quite the range of talent, with expertise in HTML, PHP, MySQL, and various CMS systems. He also plays the lottery – though he never wins. Ever.

Will couldn’t resist coming home to Athens after working his way up the East Coast. A graduate of the University of Georgia with a BFA in Graphic Design, he formerly worked as an in-house designer with the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD. You can probably find Will running his neighborhood streets or walking his dog Ginger. Will lives close to downtown Athens and is married to Brittany, a senior lecturer at UGA.

Grace, our exceptionally talented Front-End Web Developer, hails from the whimsically named town of Fairyland—yes, really—where she attended Fairyland Elementary and even lived on Aladdin Road. Seeking a college experience just as magical, she naturally landed in Athens, graduating magna cum laude from the University of Georgia in 2017. She went on to earn her Master’s in Web Development and Design from the University of Denver in 2022, graduating summa cum laude. With over 10 years of web development experience, Grace is a key member of our Creative Team, designing and developing visually stunning, modern websites with a strong focus on responsive design, cross-browser compatibility, and accessibility for all users. When she’s not bringing digital visions to life, you can find her swinging from a trapeze, teaching a yoga class, or spending quality time with her loved ones and her adorable pups.