Charles Eltinge Marsh

Charles Eltinge Marsh passed away February 21, 2017.
On December 4, 1923, Charles Wesley Elmore Marsh and Sarah Lavinia Smith Marsh were blessed by the birth of Charles E. Marsh, aka ‘Marsh’ to everyone he met. He was the youngest of four, and his three siblings were Julia Marsh Jenkins, Anne Marsh Vance, and James Elmore Marsh.
Marsh was born in Dublin, Georgia, and at the age of six, his family moved to Bradenton, Florida. He loved the beach and referred to himself as a Florida Boy. He graduated from Manatee High School and attended Mars Hill Junior College. Marsh loved reminiscing his high school years and continued to have contact with many of his classmates for the rest of his life.
In WWII, Marsh enlisted into the Navy. He served our country and was stationed at Alameda Naval Air Station where he worked on repairing airplanes damaged during combat and restoring them as new, primarily F6F planes. It was during this time when he met Mary Jane Witt, the only WAVE on the F6F line. They became good friends; however, when the war was over, they went their separate ways. Marsh moved several times after separating from the service. In the summer
of 1949, he received a letter from Mary Witt Letts, the WAVE he met in Alameda, California. The letter was forwarded to every address he lived since he left the Navy. She explained that she had married Bill Letts and had a little girl, Linda. Bill worked in law enforcement and was killed in the line of duty. His death occurred before Linda was born. Marsh and Mary had corresponded for several months when he asked her to marry him. She accepted, and they were married on July 8, 1950. They had three children, Linda, Sarah, and Don. The Marsh’s spent many summers traveling all over the United States with the three kids in a station wagon and camping gear strapped on top of the car. They traveled extensively in the Western US and often took the
grandkids. They joined camping clubs and took monthly trips around Texas and to nearby states.
Marsh loved classical music. He played the piano, violin, and organ. He loved playing the organ the most and insisted on purchasing one as large as his dining room. He played from memory, and used the organ to transcend into a world full of memories and relaxation. He made it known that the organ would be gifted to the church when he died.
Marsh is preceded in death by his wife Mary, and his son Don.
He is survived by his daughters, Linda Haas (husband Gary Haas) and Sarah Miller; He has four grandchildren Donna Eder, Cheryl Coursey, Sharon Ratliff, and Julia Steger, and he has seven great grandchildren, Garrett Eder, Marissa Eder, Marlys Coursey, Erin Coursey, Robert Eubanks, Cray Steger, and Anna Steger.