Albert Joseph Ondrish, Sr.

Albert Joseph Ondrish, Sr, 92, passed away peacefully on July 5, 2024 in Frederick, Maryland.  Albert is survived by his wife of 65 years, Mary Ann and children Debra Scheck (Andrew), Stephen Ondrish (Maria), Albert Ondrish Jr, and Julie King (John); grandchildren Timothy Scheck, Caroline Vail (Mike), Jonathan Scheck (Cari), Sarah Schroeder (Matt), Abigail Scheck, Nick Ondrish, Rachel Ondrish, Christianna Ondrish, Joshua Ondrish, Aaron Ondrish, Gabriel Ondrish, Janna Ondrish, Jennifer King (Mike), Jessica Eder (Will); brothers David Ondrish (Donna Jean) and James Ondrish; numerous great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins.  He is predeceased by parents Stephen and Anna Ondrish; brothers Steve Ondrish, Robert Ondrish, and Theodore Ondrish; sisters Joann Sheroke and Marie McDonough and grandson Zachary Ondrish.

Born on July 29, 1931 in Waltersburg, Pennsylvania, Albert grew up in rural Southwestern Pennsylvania and attended Uniontown High School.  After high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served his country during the Korean War aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Valley Forge as an Electronics Technician.  After four years in the Navy, he received a degree in Electrical Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering and had a long career ending as a Division Director at Vitro Corporation, a US defense contractor, in Silver Spring, Maryland.

He married Mary Ann Pechatsko in January 1959 at St. Hedwig Catholic Church in Smock, Pennsylvania and after living in Birmingham, Alabama; Long Island, New York; and Silver Spring, Maryland, they raised four children in Fulton, Maryland.  Albert was extremely proud that he and all his brothers served in the armed forces and loved talking about his Navy experiences; however, he mostly enjoyed discussing growing up in the wooded hills of Fayette County, Pennsylvania.  He was a devout Catholic, an avid sailor, gardener, bow-hunter and camper.  Albert was a life-long learner and was interested in a range of topics from geology and fossils to the genealogy of his family’s origins in Czechoslovakia and Hungary to learning the Slavik language.  After he retired, he and Mary Ann spent years watching over their grandchildren teaching them to tie their shoes, master arithmetic tables, and how to drive.  He attended their countless school and sporting events and saved every recital, play, graduation, and meet program.

He will be dearly missed by his loved ones and all who knew him.

A Visitation will be held on Thursday July 18, 2024 from 2:00-4:00 PM and 6:00-8:00 PM at Donaldson Funeral Home of Clarksville, P.A., 12540 Clarksville Pike, Clarksville, Maryland 21029.  A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, July 19, 2024 at 11:00 AM at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, 8300 Old Columbia Road, Fulton, Maryland 20759.  After the mass a reception to immediately follow at St. Francis of Assisi reception hall. Internment will be held for family at St. Louis Catholic Cemetery, 5950 Ten Oaks Road, Clarksville, Maryland.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the Alzheimer's Association ( https:act.alz.org/donate ).

Alzheimer's Association
225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago IL 60601
Web: https://www.alz.org/