Ford Schumann '66 on Recycling, Birding, and Giving Back

At The Governor's Academy Reunion in June, Ford Schumann '66 will receive the Academy's Non Sibi Sed Aliis award, honoring an alumnus or alumna who embodies the school motto: “Not for self, but for others.”

A longtime advocate for environmental sustainability, Schumann founded Infinity Recycling in 1989, serving Kent County, Maryland, for 33 years. In 2019, the Robert F. Schumann Foundation made a grant to Govs that helped renovate a Parsons classroom for engineering instruction.

The project-based engineering course provides students with hands-on experience in 3D printing, laser cutting, electronics, programming, and long-term project management. Science and engineering faculty member Marcus Soule said the gift expanded opportunities for innovation and exploration.

“Because of Ford's support, Governor's is able to cultivate exploration and pursue new and interesting projects that empower male and female students to believe in their abilities in science and technology,” Soule said.

Now retired, Schumann spends his days enjoying what he calls the “G-words”: garden, golf, guitar, grandkids—and Govs. At Reunion, he looks forward to reconnecting with classmates, including former dormmate Jim Connolly '66, P'08, who now lives next door to the rental property where Schumann will stay.

Reflecting on the award, Schumann said the spirit of “not for self, but for others” has long resonated with him. “It inspires me to be a part of a team,” he said. “It’s so much better to work together than as an individual.”

What drew you to make a career in the recycling industry? 

After I got married, my wife and I moved into a house with its own compost bin in the backyard. That concept really hit me, and I thought, “This is great. It’s less trash to throw out.” I moved back to Chestertown, Maryland, where I was involved with a community watchdog organization that had started a recycling program in Kent County. It was natural for me to admire what they did and just try to make it better and better. 

When I started Infinity Recycling, I started it as a 501(c)(3) because I thought of it as a public service. I was trying to encourage as much recycling in the community as possible, not necessarily to make a big profit. 

How did your passion for environmentalism evolve?

Back at Governors in '66, “environmentalism” was not a commonly heard word. The first Earth Day was in 1970. I went to the second one. There was a little newspaper periodical called CAN—Consumer Action Now—and it got me thinking about everything from reading ingredients on food and learning where it came from to that phrase "reduce, reuse, recycle.” My wife and I always added “refuse”—just don’t buy things. 

Growing up, how was environmental stewardship instilled in you? 

My dad was really instrumental in that. When he was in grade school, he had bronchitis for a good part of a year, and he had to stay in his room and just look out the window. A neighbor had built a bird feeder—there weren’t commercial bird feeders available back in the 1930s. That’s how he got fascinated with birds. 

As we grew up, we would admire what he admired. He would take us birding first thing in the morning, and that was exciting—although he could see the birds better than we could. 

Later on, my dad got a piece of property right outside of town that he made into a bird sanctuary. It’s called Nuthatch Hollow, and upon his death, he gave the sanctuary to the State University of New York at Binghamton, which is right across the street from the bird reserve. So we spent a lot of time out there watching the birds. They had big bird feeders and beautiful picture windows. It even had a speaker so you could hear the birds. First thing we did was run over, turn on the amplifier, and listen to the birds.

In fact, the bird my entire family’s in love with is the Nuthatch. They’ve got such a funny little call, and they go upside down. My memory of my dad is strong when I go birding, and it makes me wish I knew my birds even better. He was colorblind, which meant that he was more sensitive to movements and silhouettes, and he knew the bird calls better than we did. His primary purpose was to study birds and to encourage good habitats for birds in the eastern seaboard flyway. 

How did your time at Govs impact you? 

When I went to Governor Dummer, the faculty was so excellent and encouraging, and they emphasized all the good things: being a gentleman, being good. A couple of teachers and coaches had a real impact on me, including Bob Anderson P'78, who was the head coach of the football team, and Heb Evans, who was head of the lacrosse team, with Bob as the assistant coach. Bob tended to coach the defense, and I was a goalie on the lacrosse team. 

I also took Bob Anderson’s biology class, and it was really fun and inspiring to learn about things that at first I thought were kind of dry. Matt Murphy’s literature class opened up my mind as far as reading goes. We read some wonderful books. 

The most important thing is to strive toward learning the truth. Be critical about the information you get. Don’t blindly follow. 

What inspired you to make a grant in support of Govs? 

I’m just a real advocate for Governor Dummer because I had such a wonderful experience growing up there. You go in at age 13, and you graduate around 18, and along the way you become an adult. It was wonderful. As part of my family’s foundation, I can invite certain organizations to apply for grants, and Governors was one of the special ones for me—as long as they had a good project, and they did. The building on the Parker River [the Alfond Coastal Research Center] is a fantastic facility. I’m sure my dad would be really proud that we got involved in that. 

What’s your favorite place to connect to nature? 

Being outdoors in just about any place. I recently went birding in Central Park. It was eight in the morning, and there must have been 100 birders out there with binoculars all pointed at the trees. You wander over to people and ask, “What do you see?” That was inspirational. 

What gives you hope for the environment these days? 

What gives me hope is the community I live in. Chestertown has gotten really nice over the years, with the parks that were created. There’s art and sculptures all over the town. We have a tea party celebration every year, and thousands of people come to the festival. The town puts out 60 trash cans, and every trash can will have a recycling container next to it. That’s rare. You don’t hear of that many towns that go that far. We have a big solar project coming up that the town is endorsing. My hope is that the people who come visit Chestertown will go home and emulate it. 

What's your message to current Govs students about the role they play in safeguarding the planet? 

The most important thing is to strive toward learning the truth. Be critical about the information you get. Don’t blindly follow.