My Polish wife can concur that those are sentiments of condolence. Basically that it's a real shame that a life was taken so young but that he enjoyed it to its fullest and thats why we should all take a page out of his book.

guess its all been said. only contact i had was thru a series of PM's. which were funny and insightful.
i am very touched by all these comments.
best wishes to family and all

Marks death has somehow made me realise how lazy and unfullfilled my life has become. Also how self indulgent I am. I will try to do something about this starting today. At least he died doing something positive.
I hope there is an afterlife - there is no limit to what we humans can achieve when we put our minds and passion into it.
Take care Mark!

Thanks for the forum Mark, which you so generously payed for from your own pocket. Thanks for the opportunities that it opened to me, most especially meeting jolly, like minded, new friends in a foreign land. I hope to meet many more. I am sorry I never met you. I always enjoyed reading your well written, knowledgeable and authoritive posts. The first few times that I visited this site it was your posts in particular that drew my attention at first and kept me coming back.

I sincerely hope that this community will keep the flame burning, in order that others can benefit from the wonderful resource that the forum has become.

Condolences to all in mourning.

I spent the better part of yesterday reading through these many posts and trying to digest the news. As many of you have said, it was just too hard to find the right words to express my own sadness, let alone the words to offer Mark's loved ones.

Though I only met Mark a handful of times, he left a strong impression with me, and a few small memories for which I am grateful. I get the feeling, from what all of you have said, that this was just the way he was with his life - leaving impressions wherever he went and with whomever he met. He struck me as passionate, kind, and eager to share a wealth of knowledge and good will with anyone who asked. I was one of those who asked, and I'm sure, not the only one who received far more than was expected. Most of all - newbie or otherwise - he never judged me. He may have disagreed, but never once judged.

I only wish I could have given something more in return.

So, here's to you Mark. Thanks so much for your support, for helping to make my move here so much smoother, and for the wonderful community you've built. And here's to those, like Lynn, who he left behind. I'm sure you know you have a world of support here. I wish you all the best, and my thoughts are with you.

This picture was taken at Venture Cocktail, where, understanding the grassroots thing far better than I, he was a real asset.

Best to all,

Elizabeth

So sorry to hear the news.I didnt know Mark, but hope his last moments were passed in a peaceful place where he was happy,if that makes any sense to anyone.iThe forum is an exceptional place where new beginnings are happening everyday,and there are people out there who dont even know it yet! so glad it crossed my path.
my thoughts go out to those in pain,again so sorry.
Be Well

I did not know Mark personally, but I do appreciate this site very much and his work to make it happen. I wanted to express my condolences to his family and friends.

Well it's really sad when we find out that he's gone. Last monday evening on the way back to zürich I am talking to my husband because my husband have 2 weeks holiday and we planed to visit Mark.
I told my husband that we didn't visit him and then he told me he send Mark e-mail and he said he's in America.
Wednesday evening my husband get inside our bedroom with sad face and told me the sad news. I never know him for such a long time but I know he's a nice person he was there on our marrage and he is a good friend of my husband.

Wherever he is I hope he finds peace.

I read the sad news yesterday, and did not know what to say at first. Although I am a 'quiet' member, this forum has been incredibly helpful in many ways, and it is my first point of reference for anything Swiss-related.

I recently lost a family member, and the poem below helped me come to terms with this loss, so I thought I'd share it with you. This will be my way to thank Mark (and everyone who cares about him on this forum) for creating such a great community.

The Ship

Dear EF members,

Thank you all for showing your respect and appreciation for Mark. Reading all your kind words and thoughts means so much to me and his family. Please keep the stories and thoughts and poems coming...

I expect the remembrance event to take place probably on the 30th of March. As I said more details will follow as soon as I've been able to finalise things and return...

For those of you who wish to have a quiet moment in remembrance of him, he will be cremated here, in Florida on Monday afternoon.

Lynn you don't know me but my thoughts are with you. I was out drinking tonight but every few seconds my mind kept drifting towards this tragedy. I was imagining myself in your current situation and it was and is tearing up my heart. I am crap at these things but I was reading some points online so here they are. I hope they will make atleast .000000000000001% difference to the pain you are feeling
________________________________________________

There are lots of emotions to deal with when someone close to you dies. But, here are five important steps to help you get through this difficult time. What you do next, in both the short term and the long term, will have a direct impact on your mental, physical and spiritual well being. It can make the difference between long days of depression and a manageable lifestyle in the days and years ahead.


- Cry For Your Loss
Don’t buy into the myth that you have to act a certain way. It is natural to cry. And, listen to this: it is necessary to cry.There’s an old expression that says that crying is pain leaving the body. There’s a lot of truth to that.

-Talk About Your Loved One
There’s no lonelier feeling than the one in the pit of your stomach about a month after the funeral. It seems like that loved one is still very much in your life, tugging at your heart strings daily. But, it also seems like the rest of the world has gone on with the daily routine. Find someone, a dear friend, who is comfortable with the conversation and talk about that person. It’s a necessary part of the grieving process. You want everyone to know the quirks of Mark and it’s really more for you than it is for them.

-Honor the Memory of the Deceased
The dates on the calendar are tough. Birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, they all hurt, especially the first time around. Especially during the first year, find a way to make them (or their memory) part of those special days. Eat at their favorite restaurant, buy a gift for a family member in their honor, do something that sparks an old memory.

-Allow for Time to Heal
The frown won’t change in a second. It will take time. At first, when you remember your loved one, it’s going to hurt. Honoring them will help because it will help you feel like the memory is alive, even when the person is not.
At some later date, you will remember them with a smile and a fond memory. That happens at a different time for everyone. Your time will come. But don’t try to rush it.

-Think About Their Wishes
What would they want you to do? They probably wouldn’t want you sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. This will be hard in the beginning. But, as time begins to heal, think of ways to live your life that will honor the loved one. Being the best you can be, knowing that they are counting on you to do that will help. You can go on with your life and bring them with you. That’s what they’d want.
__________________________________________________

Lynn all at EF are here to pull you through this tough time night or day. You are never alone and only few clicks away from thousands of cyber friends whose lives were touched and enriched by Mark. His legacy will continue through this forum.

My heart goes out to Mark's family, friends and loved ones.

Sadly I never met Mark, but from the commentary I've read I can see he was the type of guy who took life by the horns and rode it for everything he was worth... an ideal I can only aspire to.

Mark's energy and dedication to the forum touched us all, he helped others, and more importantly helped us help each other. He's left some pretty big shoes to fill.

God bless, rest in peace Mark.

I am sure Mark is somewhere having a laugh at your decision or maybe influencing your thoughts... But I think on this occasion I don't mind having a crap birthday.

Richard

I've only just seen this thread and I have to say it was a shock.
I'd not met Mark in person and spoke only a couple of times to him online directly and, silly as it is, it's strange to see photos of a young and obviously normal man when all I'd seen in my time on here was his avatar.
The internet is a strange place where it's very easy to make assumptions about people based on a few writings and a picture, but it was quite clear that Mark really did care a great deal about helping the ex-pat community - and not for his own gain, either.
Without the forum, life would certainly be very different here for my family as we'd have lacked a lot of the help an support it has given us over the last year. Without Mark's enthusiasm, time and effort, this forum wouldn't have been here for any of us to enjoy and use.
My thanks go to Mark for what he did with his time here and my condolences to Lynn and to Mark's friends and family.
Also, my thanks to those who are keeping this forum running in the mean time.

Tony

Its a shame i never got to meet Mark and thank him personally for creating this site.

Through this forum Mark will continue to help people in Switzerland for many years to come, which is something his family and friends should be very proud of.


RIP

I never met Mark but am humbled and inspired by what he created with EF and the amount of time and energy he gave us all in doing so. The world would be a better place if more of us followed his example of translating wondering into action (as described in his first post).
My heartfelt condolences to his fiancée, friends and family.

Just saw this on the main page (had been posting only to subscribed threads following email notifications recently) and I am shocked and dumbfounded.

Rest In Peace Mark and thanks for making an amazing contribution to many people's lives.

As I've just joined this forum today, I didn't have the honour to meet Mark. May his ideas live on on this forum.

Sincere condolences to his fiancé, relatives and friends.

Mark has made such a huge difference to our lives here in Switzerland by creating this community of people, ready to help each other with advice and guidance. I am really grateful for all his vision and hard work.
May he rest in peace.
God bless
Chester

I knew Mark for several years and had the pleasure and honour to enjoy with him several dives and courses in the last few years. We took some steps in our divecareer together. Diving is a important part of me too and it is sad to loose a close friend on that.
When i travelled some years ago to Australia i meet his family there, which i received a very warm welcome.
It was a shock for me to hear about the accident and i still don`t want to believe it.
I am in deeply grieve and send my condolences to Lynn and his family.

Chappi