Father Charles F. Smarsh, an educator and longtime weekend assistant at Holy Redeemer Parish in College Park, Maryland, died Aug. 25 at his home in at Riderwood Village in Silver Spring, Maryland. He was 83.
Born and raised on Staten Island, New York, the future priest graduated from St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoody, New York, and was ordained at St. Patrick’s Cathedral for the Archdiocese of New York in 1964.
Father Smarsh served as a parochial vicar of Our Saviour Parish in the Bronx, New York from 1964 to 1965, and at St. Catherine Parish, Pelham, New York from 1966 to 1970. He earned a graduate degree in theology and Greek and Latin languages from Fordham University, and a master’s degree in physics from Stevens Institute of Technology. During this time, he also taught physics at both Fordham University and Iona College.
He earned a master’s degree in education from the University of Maryland, and completed coursework there for doctorates in physics and education there also. He taught in the physics lab at the University of Maryland for 34 years.
Father Smarsh became a part of Holy Redeemer Parish in College Park beginning in 1973 when he became a weekend assistant while working as head of the physics lab at the University of Maryland and residing in his home in Berwyn Heights, Maryland. Holy Redeemer Parish was hosted a weekend celebration in 2014 to mark Father Smarsh’s 50th anniversary as a priest. Over the decades, he became a much-loved part of the parish.
Father Smarsh served at Holy Redeemer until 2015, when his health kept him from continuing parish ministry. He moved into independent living at Riderwood in 2016 and then assisted living there in 2018.
Father Smarsh loved books, he was an avid reader of history, and music written before the 18th century. He is survived by his sister Jane Monahan and her husband Drew, his brother Joseph Smarsh and his wife Carol, seven nieces and nephews and 12 grand nieces and nephews.
A Mass of Christian Burial for Father Charles F. Smarsh will be celebrated on Thursday, Sept. 2, 2021, at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church, College Park Maryland.
