Father Ray Smith
Father Ray Smith, who retired from active ministry in 2005, died March 30. He was 89 years old. A funeral Mass will be celebrated April 7 at 11 a.m. at St. Brendan's Church in San Francisco, where Father Smith served in 1956 and 1957 in his first assignment as a priest.
Father David Ghiorso, pastor of St. Charles Parish in San Carlos, and who in an announcement of the priest's death "credits Father Smith for steering him toward the priesthood" will be homilist.
Father Ghiorso told Catholic San Francisco that Father Smith was "Uncle Rev" to him and his family noting they have known the priest since 1957 when he served at Church of the Visitacion Parish in San Francisco.
"There have been a couple of important people in my life and he was one," Father Ghiorso said. "My vocation grew out of my knowing him and his example."
Father Smith served as director of Silver Penny Ranch in Petaluma for almost 20 years following 24 years as resident chaplain at St. Mary's Medical Center in San Francisco. The countryside estate served as a retreat site for archdiocesan and other groups until its sale in September 2005. Msgr. Harry Schlitt, vicar for administration for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, led many retreats at Silver Penny.
"Father Smith loved the Silver Penny Ranch," Msgr. Schlitt told Catholic San Francisco. "He loved the outdoors, the country, his flowers and all the little things that constantly required care. He loved his people, his pipe and especially the two religious women who assisted him in running the Silver Penny. Mercy Sister Mary Hope Sanchez and Mercy Sister Joanne De Vincenzo were the backbone of the Retreat Center. It was very difficult for all three of them to leave the Silver Penny when it was sold. I had the difficult task of informing them that it was time."
Msgr. Schlitt continued, "There were so many celebrations of life that took place at the Silver Penny because of Father Ray. All of those people can now celebrate his life as he returns to his eternal home where once again he can care for the things he loved."
"I liked Ray very much," said Father Edward Cleary, retired pastor of St. James Parish in San Francisco. The two priests were ordained together in 1956 by then-Auxiliary Bishop Merlin Guilfoyle. "Archbishop Mitty was sick at the time," Father Cleary recalled.
"His favorite pastime was gardening and he had a lot of opportunity to do that at Silver Penny," Father Cleary remembered, noting he attended several days of recollection on the idyllic grounds.
"Ray and I got along very well," Father Cleary said. ‘I'm very sorry to hear of his death but know now he is at peace. He was an excellent priest."
"He was a great priest," said Les McDonald, executive director of the Real Property Support Group for the Archdiocese of San Francisco. "He took care of Silver Penny like it was his own. Father Smith was a really fine guy. He loved nature, was kind and generous and a great man."
"He was a gifted speaker and writer, well noted for his intellect and clarity, and had earned the deep respect and admiration of his chaplain colleagues" Auxiliary Bishop William Justice, vicar for clergy, said in the announcement of Father Smith's death. "Father Smith is particularly known for the groundbreaking work that he undertook in the certification and accreditation of hospital chaplains."
Father Smith also served at San Francisco's Church of the Visitacion and St. Anne of the Sunset and as an armed services chaplain reaching the rank of Commander in the U.S. Navy. He earned a degree in Economics from the University of Wisconsin entering St. Patrick's Seminary in 1951 following service in the Navy during WW II and subsequent involvement in a family business in Carmel.
A memorial Mass will be celebrated April 14 at noon at St. Mary's Medical Center. Notes of condolence may be sent to the late priest's nephew, Stephen Smith, at 3424 N. Hackett Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53211.
From April 3, 2009 issue of Catholic San Francisco.
