Mark Van Swearingen

Mark Van Swearingen, 73, passed away peacefully at Mother Angeline McCrory Manor in Columbus, Ohio from his long and tough battle with COPD on December 30, 2024.

Mark was well-known in Ohio as “Mr. Fish, the Dead Fish Peddler.” He sold fresh fish to various restaurants and grocery stores throughout Ohio for over thirty years. He loved his job and often lectured on the topic of fish as well as mentored numerous people so that they could start their own businesses and fish markets/stores.

As well as selling fish, he loved to fish. He took fishing very seriously and won numerous state awards for his fishing and was very proud of them. Mark was a great “chef.” He enjoyed finding new recipes to try and most turned out well. He was a serious griller and once he discovered the grill smoker, he experimented with all types of food.

Mark was a diehard Cleveland Browns fan. Growing up in the Willoughby Hills area, he brought that love down to Columbus when he attended The Ohio State University in 1969. At OSU, Mark met many of his very long-time friends and had an OSU Reunion every year to gather, laugh and reminisce. They were all attending OSU when the Kent State shootings occurred, and Mark took many pictures of the things that went on at OSU during that time (there is a video attached here that Mark made with the pictures he took on campus during this time in history).

Mark loved music and had a diverse selection for his top ten favorites. He listened to anything from the 40s to the 70s. His first love though was The Beatles. Mark had numerous collections from albums, 45’s, Beatle trinkets and memorabilia, books, pictures, clothes, Beatle cards, etc. He authored and published three different books regarding the Beatles. He loved going to antique shows and flea markets through the years to search out anything related to the Beatles.

He is preceded in death by his father, Robert Swearingen and mother, Esther Swearingen; mother-in-law and father-in-law, Herbert (Anna Mae) Smith; brother-in-law, Samuel Smith and brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Dave (Sue) Luster.

Mark is survived by his wife, Sandy Swearingen, brother and sister-in-law, Jeff (Mari) Swearingen; brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Charlie (Janet) Smith; daughter and son-in law, Jessica (Joey) Collins and their children; step-daughter and son-in-law, Katie (Chaffe) Bolin and their children, Joshua Edelman and Carter Bolin; numerous nieces and nephews, JoAnna (Randy) Goeller, Scott Driskill and D. Chris Swearingen, B. Takara (Tom) Lewis; great niece and significant other, Britney Goeller (Jujwan Leach) and their son Saige Leach; great nephews, Andrew Driskill and Ethan Holt; and great niece, Mira Holt. 

Mark is also survived by all the other wonderful people that he met in his many diverse travels through life. A celebration of life will be held at a later date and details will go out to everyone. Memorial donations in Mark's memory may be made to the American Lung Association of Ohio.

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal,

Love leaves a memory no one can steal"

      -quote by Richard Puz

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Mark Van Swearingen, please visit our floral store.