Mark Allen Stephenson, 69, of Mayville, Wisconsin, passed away on Monday July 8th, 2024 at Marshfield Medical Center in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin.

Mark was born on March 31st, 1955 in Lakewood, Ohio. He was the son of Samuel and Doris (Vogel) Stephenson. Mark graduated from Lyons Township High School in LaGrange, Illinois in 1973. After high school, he studied at the University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois, and then the College of Dupage in Glen Ellyn, Illinois where he was awarded an Associate's Degree in Computer Science. He continued his pursuit of education throughout his working years by taking classes at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. Mark once enrolled in a pottery class at North Central, and would often come home with some of the most interesting and creative works of pottery you could possibly imagine.

While at the University of Illinois, Mark met his future wife, Jayne (Moses) Stephenson. They were married on June 8th, 1979. Their union ended in divorce 16 years later. However, from their marriage they were given a shared home in Downers Grove, Illinois, a son, Robert, and some years to enjoy together as a happy young couple.

Mark spent the majority of his career working as a computer programmer. He worked for AT&T and later Lucent Technologies. When you asked Mark what he did at AT&T, he would say something about debugging loads, show you how to open the command line, and give you some commands to try. He would follow that up by saying "…but you could learn how to do my job in 15 minutes." He was too modest. Mark often worked remotely from his home computer. He would tuck his son in at bedtime and then go into the adjoining room and type; debugging loads for AT&T long into the night.

In his spare time, Mark would listen to music. He would make the rounds at now-defunct record stores in the Chicago suburbs to browse the rock albums and add CDs to his collection. Mark had a wooden tower containing his CD collection at home, and it housed hundreds of albums. He bought his son his first cassette tape. He would also take his son to the local pool hall, where they would shoot pool while Mark played The Doors on the jukebox. When Mark gave his car to his son when the boy was in high school, it was "sold" in exchange for a Grateful Dead double CD that Mark wanted. Mark had an almost encyclopedic knowledge of classic rock. He loved music.

Mark's other favorite interest was probably whatever his son was interested in. Mark was very present as a Dad. He was there to play Nintendo with you. He'd help you find the Warp Whistles in Super Mario Brothers so you could skip to the last level. He was there to take you to the driving range to hit a bucket of golf balls. When you took up model rocketry, he was there to take you to the hobby shop (over and over again) for supplies, and he was there to take you to the park to launch the final product (over and over again). He made time to watch every movie that Jim Carrey was in during the 1990's with you. When you were learning how to drive, he was there to do some of your learner's permit hours with you in the AT&T parking lot after everyone else had left work for the day. He was there for high school graduation, and he was there for college graduation. When you bought an electric guitar, he was there to slip you some money for an amplifier. Mark made funny cards appear like clockwork on birthdays. He was there when you needed your first car, and he was there to help pay for college. Mark was very good at being a Dad.

Joking around was another Mark Stephenson trademark; no matter where you were or what you were doing, he was always trying to get a laugh out of you. He'd do something funny in the pew next to you in Church to try to make you smile. He'd try to get you to crack up in a packed commuter train or while strolling through a department store. Although Mark could be pretty reserved sometimes, he always had something funny to say to a gas station clerk or the person manning the self-checkouts at the grocery store. During his final days, he'd crack a joke from his hospital bed to try to make the nurses smile. His unique, wonderful and intelligent sense of humor is sorely missed.

One time I asked Mark's ex-wife, Jayne, why she married Mark. She replied, "Because he made me laugh."

Mark maintained a tough exterior, but underneath that he was incredibly sensitive. He was extremely smart and could be very empathetic in a way that eludes most people. In a world that is sometimes a bit over-reliant on conformity, Mark moved through life in a way that made sense to him, and was very true to himself. He made mistakes along the way, but everyone makes mistakes sometimes. It's part of being human.

Mark was preceded in death by his mother Doris.

Mark was survived by his father, Samuel, who has since passed at the time of this writing. Mark is also survived by two brothers, Eric Stephenson of Mayville, Wisconsin and Scott (Jan) Stephenson of Joliet, Illinois, a sister, Dru Stephenson of Darien, Illinois, and a son, Robert Stephenson of Lafayette, Indiana. Additionally, he is survived by many nieces and nephews. Mark will also be missed by friends and acquaintances who were graced with his unique charm and wit around Mayville.

Mark's cremation was entrusted to Cornerstone Funeral and Cremation Services in Beaver Dam, and Mark's ashes were scattered in accordance with his final wishes.

Donations in memory of Mark can be made to Daily Bread Soup Kitchen in Champaign, Illinois. ( https://dailybreadsoupkitchen.com/donate)

Mark, if you're out there looking down on us from above: We miss you a lot. You were loved while you were here with us. You are still loved. You will always be loved.