Dr. Samuel Burton Rentsch, Jr. passed on Feb. 24 at age 87 of congestive heart failure. Born in Derby, Conn. in 1928, he was the son of Dr. Samuel Burton Rentsch, Sr. and Minnie Hazel Holloway Rentsch. He was predeceased by his sister Emily Christine. Samuel was married twice. With Juanita Good Brown Rentsch Millerick, he had five children: Christi, Sammy, Bonnie, Shelley and Rusty. With Robin Ould Sabin Rentsch, he gained another daughter, Brooke. He also was loved by six grand-children and three great-grandchildren.
Sam attended Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven, Conn. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y. where he graduated with a degree in engineering and Medical College of Virginia with a degree in medicine. He played football and other sports in high school and college. During his three years of military service, he was the doctor for two submarines in Groton, Conn. Later, he set up his medical practice in Glastonbury, Conn. where he worked until he retired and moved with Robin to Great Falls, and more recently to Ashby Ponds, Ashburn.
Sam Rentsch made a name for himself with his Model A that he worked on tirelessly and his submarine, called the Benthic Explorer. He bought the Model A when he was a teenager and continued to ride around in it right up until his last year of life. His Model A was part of the Cherry Blossom Parade in Washington D.C. The Benthic Explorer, on the other hand, was built in his backyard. He did intensive research and inaugurated the sub in 1978 by submerging it into the Connecticut River. Later, his invention was used for oceanography research at the University of Rhode Island and now it is part of the Children’s Museum of Southeastern Connecticut in Niantic. Sam made a half-dozen other inventions, notably the Cardiac Press. He was an adjunct professor of oceanography at U.R.I. As a doctor, Sam was very dedicated to his patients. He took a year hiatus to be Director of the Peace Corps in Chad, Africa from 1966-1967. Sam and Robin went on exciting scuba diving trips in Australia, the Caribbean and the Red Sea.
The family will be receiving friends at the Adams Green Funeral Home in Herndon on March 5 at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of the causes that Sam was so interested in: Doctors Without Borders (donate.doctorswithoutborders.org/) or Jacques Cousteau Society (http://www.cousteau.org/support-2/). Mark Tribute to Dr. Samuel Rentsch and notify James.Rentsch@msn.com. It is also possible to donate by phone. Thank you for thinking positively about this quiet, courageous and interesting man.