Maynard Knestrick passed away in early May. Maynard graduated in1969 and joined Norfolk Southern Railroad. In 1974, he came to Atlanta and was one of the founding members of Atlanta Video Communicators. That group soon chartered the Atlanta ITVA. He held many leadership positions including president, in 1985, as well as serving on the board of directors. Maynard was always willing to help host judging panels for local and national festivals. He was elected to the ITVA (now MCAI) national board in July 1999. Our chapter benefited from his involvement, literally, over decades.

He had a passion for the business and the industry. To say that he was committed to the highest quality video production is an understatement. He sweated every detail of every aspect of production; writing, lighting, acting, camera, editing and sound design and drew the best of out every team member. He truly believed that if it was worth doing, it was worth doing well.

Despite his meticulous nature, he was an incredibly nice guy and always fun to work with. Maynard had a great sense of humor and caring attitude. I had the opportunity to work with him on several projects and I enjoyed every minute of the work, but more importantly, the personal time shooting the breeze about family, food, travel and video.

Maynard was actively involved with the Rotary Student Exchange program, hosting many college-age kids from Scandinavia and other areas. In recent years after his retirement from the railroad, he taught classes at AIU. As Mark Weiss noted, Maynard was a renaissance man who appreciated music and art.

He is survived by his wife, Kay.

People like Maynard make the difference in this world. He will be deeply missed by a very large group of people.