Matthew Joseph Smith

Mathew Joseph Smith, 86, passed away peacefully on June 27, 2026 surrounded by his family. Matthew was born on September 12, 1939 in Brooklyn, NY. He was raised solely by his devoted mother, Rose Smith.

Despite a childhood of poverty and hardship he graduated from St. Joseph High School in 1954. With courage and determination to make a better life he enlisted in the Army in 1963. He was extremely proud of the Marksman Sharpshooter qualifying Medal he earned and the aptitude for order and clerical abilities he developed during his service.

The military provided the framework by which he lived-with high morals, ethical values, and unwavering integrity that remained with him throughout his life.

In 1970, he met and married the love of his life, Joan DiGangi. Their marriage revealed his wit, humour, romantic heart, and creative spirit. He had found the one flower that made him want to become a gardener- to tend, protect, and cherish her in his own simple way because she had become his world.

Shortly after Chris was born he followed his heart and bought a house in the suburbs, not only to own it, but to grow it into a home. He was a true renaissance “do it yourself” man who could fix almost anything. He welcomed the challenges of home improvement and took great joy in teaching his children and others practical skills he had learned.

Matthew was hardworking, self driven, and enjoyed many careers throughout his life, including positions with the Bell Telephone Company (Ma Bell) and Union Pacific RailRoad as a bookkeeper. Passionate about life and self improvement and viewed every experience as an opportunity to learn from and develop his abilities- not only for himself, but to better serve the people he worked with and everything he pursued in life.

He was deeply fascinated with building his knowledge of world history and amassed a comprehensive library of historical books. Despite his quietly focused demeanor, he was quick with a “dad joke” and even quicker with a historical fact (or the entire story with expansive unhurried detail). His passion for history broadened into collecting and meticulously cataloguing military memorabilia.

Matthew found great enjoyment in drawing, painting, gardening, nature, fishing, reading National Geographic magazines, and romantic music (for which he had an extensive collection of Time-Life sets). He especially enjoyed methodically planning family trips with detailed itineraries, spreadsheets and lists.

Above all Dad was our family historian preserving and documenting life's moments capturing our travels and family adventures through countless photos and videos in every format over the decades. With the arrival of his grandchildren, he found renewed joy in lovingly capturing their smiles, milestones, and everyday moments, creating treasured memories for the new generation to cherish.

Matthew was predeceased by his brother Arthur Smith. He is survived by his loving wife, Joan after 56 years of marriage and his children, Christopher Smith and Allison Hall (Derek Hall), and granddaughters, Sadie and Corinne Hall.

Visitation will be held on July 6, 2026 at 3pm at James Funeral Home, 540 Broadway, Massapequa, NY.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held on July 7, 2026 at 9:30am at St. William the Abbot R.C. Church, 2000 Jackson Avenue, Seaford, NY.

Interment will be held on July 7, 2026 at 11:15am at St. Charles / Resurrection cemeteries, 2015 Wellwood Avenue, Farmingdale, NY.

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made to Wounded Warrior Project or North Shore Animal League in Matthew Joseph Smith's memory. Use links below!

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North Shore Animal League America

takeaction.animalleague.org

support.woundedwarriorproject.org