Smith Bagley

Family-Placed Death Notice

BAGLEY, Smith SMITH BAGLEY Smith Bagley, businessman, philanthropist and political activist, died peacefully on January 2nd at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, MD. He was 74. He had suffered a stroke on Christmas Eve while vacationing with his family on St. Simons Island, Georgia. Mr. Bagley was the CEO of SBI, a cellular enterprise he founded in 1989. It is based in Arizona with operations in northeastern Arizona and western New Mexico and Colorado. Mr. Bagley devoted most of his life to philanthropy and supporting social justice causes. He was a founding member of Cities and Schools, the precursor of Communities in Schools, as well as a former Member of the Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He was the president of the Arca Foundation and founder of the Brenn Foundation in Washington, DC, which focuses on public policy issues such as social justice, human rights, civic engagement and the environment. He was a longstanding board member of the Sapelo Foundation in Brunswick, Georgia and a life trustee and board member for the last 50 years of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation in North Carolina. Mr. Bagley served as the Chairman of the Board of Regents of the Catholic University of America and founded the first annual American Cardinals Dinner, which is now an annual event. He was presented with the University's highest honor, the President's Medal, and he holds the title of Chairman Emeritus. Besides his family, friends and Catholic faith, his passion in life was helping the economically disadvantaged, both in the United States and in the developing world. Bagley felt these values were best realized in the Democratic Party, which he joined at the age of 17. This passion and commitment led him to run for Congress from North Carolina in the late 1960's and to serve as National Finance Vice-Chair of the Democratic National Committee and a delegate to numerous Democratic National Conventions. He and his wife, Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley, frequently opened their homes in Georgetown and Nantucket for policy dinners and fundraisers on behalf of Democratic Presidential and Senatorial candidates including Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry and Barack Obama. Musgrove, his secluded 1,400-acre estate on St. Simons Island, Georgia, was the site of President Carter's first pre-inaugural Cabinet meeting and is used as a regular retreat for policy-makers, innovative thinkers and progressive activists from around the world. His sudden passing brought telephone calls of support and condolence from prominent Democrats including President William Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who said, "In politics and philanthropy, Smith Bagley was one of the most generous people we ever met. He was also a great husband, father and friend. All of us who knew him were enriched by his life." Congresswoman Donna Edwards (D-MD) reflected on Smith Bagley's life. She said, "I most admired Smith because he lived in declaratory sentences---straightforward, honest and open. Whether in politics, philanthropy or life, Smith was my mentor. He taught me to think big and without conventional boundaries. He taught me to take risks." Terry McAuliffe, former DNC Chairman and manager of the 2008 Hillary Clinton for President Campaign, called Bagley "one of the most generous, committed and constant sources of ideas and support for Democratic causes and candidates. His spirit and positive energy were an inspiration to us all." Smith Bagley was born April 1, 1935 in New York City. He graduated from Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and served his country as a Captain in the United States Army Reserves. Bagley was the son of the late Nancy Susan Reynolds and Henry Walker Bagley of Quarry Farms, Greenwich, CT. He was the grandson of the late Richard Joshua Reynolds, the founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Survivors include his wife of 26 years, Elizabeth Frawley Bagley and six children: Walker Bagley of Lexington, KY, Nancy Reynolds Bagley of Washington, Nicole Ladmer Bagley of Washington, D.C., Brett Dylan Bagley of New York City, Vaughan Elizabeth Bagley and Conor Reynolds Bagley of Washington, D.C.; five grandchildren: Beau and Taylor Bagley, Dylan and Ella Walker, and Camron Shehabi.