Submitted by his parents

Mark was a very energetic kid who liked to be outside working and playing. He tried a variety of jobs‚ but finally found his niche with the wildland firefighting. He liked the hard work and traveling to different places. Every time he came home he had stories to tell…after he had a shower and eight hours of sleep. He really appreciated his bed after being on the ground for a couple of weeks. He would bring a variety of t-shirts home from the various fires to show and tell us about. And after all the complaining about the food and/or conditions he just left‚ he would then proceed to start getting his gear ready for the next fire call.

Mark was born in Oregon on January 29‚ 1980. He lived his entire life in our small community of Myrtle Creek. As parents we were encouraging him to ‘get on with his life’ and he was starting to show more signs in that direction. He found a very nice girlfriend who was also a firefighter and she even skateboarded. He was happy!

This year‚ 2003‚ was Mark’s third year of fire fighting with First Strike Environmental of Roseburg‚ Oregon. He enjoyed the camaraderie among the guys and was having a good year with more responsibility by being a squad leader. One day‚ very pleased with himself‚ Mark told me he had a radio and could tell others what to do. Later we heard from his supervisors that he was doing a good job and watched out for his men. At one site‚ he was upset because other trucks were going too fast and throwing dust on his guys who were packing hoses. He personally dug a little trench (speed-bump) across the road and covered it with branches and waited for the next truck to come by. They all had a good laugh over that one. I think there are a great many Mark stories and I’ve only heard a few.

He spent time in Colorado in the summer of 2002 and also took part in the space shuttle recovery program in Texas. Every place he went seemed to widen his view. One day he was watching the travel channel and they were featuring the best resorts. He calls me over to tell me he had been to the one they were talking about. He said it was in Colorado and they got to go in there and eat ‘fire clothes and all.’ It impressed him when people showed appreciation of the firefighters. I told him they probably wouldn’t let him back in with his street clothes…Mark liked plaid cowboy shirts and well-worn loose jeans.

Mark was a hard worker who like to play hard‚ too. He enjoyed snowboarding‚ bicycling‚ rock climbing and his music. However‚ he spent most of his home time at the skateboard park and was always telling about the new moves and jumps he was practicing. He told me once that he had a lot of friends at the skate park‚ but it really didn’t become apparent until his friends held a memorial for him and Jesse (another firefighter lost in this crash). They also had a lot of stories to tell.

Mark and seven of his fellow firefighters perished in a fiery crash when the van they were in collided with a semi-truck on August 24‚ 2003‚ near Vale‚ Oregon. They were returning home from firefighting in Boise National Forest in Idaho. It has been a very difficult time for all of us.

A very impressive memorial service was held September 5 for our eight fallen firefighters. Each was honored and will be remembered for who he was. It was a great tribute to the firefighting community and to our son. Mark is loved and missed by us his parents‚ family and friends. He is‚ especially‚ missed by his sister‚ Kimberly. His beloved brother Michael (age 18) died in a traffic accident in 1994.