Mark Charles Gray
July 17, 1960 - July 9, 2007
Obituary
Mark C. Gray, age 46 passed peacefully at his home after a valiant battle with cancer. He leaves behind the love of his life and best friend for the last 21 years, his partner, Kelly Brown; his mom and dad, Virginia and George Gray; sister, Annie Keltner Ashley; niece, Taylor; nephews, Jordan and Payton; his extended family, Emily, Bill, Marcella, Billy and Justin and his faithful friends, Shelby and Schatzi. A celebration of his life will be held on Friday, 07/13 at 3:00 PM at BONNEY-WATSON Parker Chapel, 900 SW 146th Ave., Burien, WA 206 244-2320. The family prefers memorial contributions be made to the American Cancer Society.
Dearest Kelly,
I’m with you in spirit and you are in my heart this day. This is something I feel Mark would say “Don’t grieve for me now I’m free, If my parting has left a void, then fill it with remembered joy, a shared laugh, a kiss” Mark’s time seemed all to brief,but it was full with good times, good friends and a loved ones touch. We will miss you Mark
Kelly, I wish I could have known
Mark alot more than I did. He is a good person, and there are not
that many really good people left
in this world.
Kelly,
I am so sorry that Mark passed away
We will all miss him very much.I have so many memories of good times we all had together camping listening to music,you name it.Koby also loved mark very much and will miss him.he always had fun with Mark and always wanted to go see uncle Mark.I love you Kelly, and will always be here for you.once again I am very sorry for your loss.
No matter how long the rivers or how wide the paths, we will meet again my friend.
Rest now as all your pain is taken away and your with God.
Kelly,
I’m so sorry for your loss. I’d like to share with you one of my favorite poems. It’s by W.H. Auden.
Funeral Blues
“Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.
Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead.
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.
He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.
The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.”
Sometimes it’s good to let all of the tears and grief flood out. Let the joy fill you heart for having such a wonderful friend. Such a blessing does not come to everyone and you have truly been blessed.
May God Bless you Kelly in the loss of your life partner. He is not gone he is walking with you, he will always be with you.
God be with you always.
My deepest sympathies to you Kelly and to Mark’s entire family…both blood and extended. I know Mark was an awesome person with a huge heart and will be greatly missed. My prayers are with each and every one of you that the Lord give you all peace and comfort. God bless.
Annie, Bonnie sent me Mark’s obit. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family. Mark was such a blast to hang out with, he had such a great sense of humor. His pictures are great, and he was more handsome than ever. May he rest in peace… Love, Jeanice Wilson
No one is truely dead if they remain in someones memory. I shall remember Mark with good thoughts. I believe those of us that are still earthbound will meet again someday
Kelly, I’m so sorry for your loss.
Denana Husnic
Kelly, Kerry and I are so sorry to hear of your loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you through this difficult time.
I’ve known Mark and Kelly ever since I first moved to Seattle and found them to be staunch friends. I will miss Mark, but we will meet again.
I love my brother’s sense of humor. He has a quick wit & ability to think of the funniest names for people on the spur of the moment. When we were younger, my brother would often tease me when he thought that mom & dad favored me over him. Usually he would tell me that I got more presents at Christmas or that mom always bought me extra goodies when she went to the store. Jokingly he would say, “They favor you cause you’re adopted” Ofcourse I wasn’t adopted But it was funny how Mark would spring that one on me every time he felt it was necessary to get a dig in. Mom & dad were pretty good at making things even for us but Mark would always joke about it anyway.
Mark was great at impersonating cartoon characters or various celebrities. He could hear a voice one time & be able to mimic it exactly. One of my favorite things that he would do was that although we lived miles away from each other, he had a unique way of letting me know he was thinking of the family. There would be times when I would pick up the phone, Mark would say his famous one liner from a movie & then hang up. I would get a good laugh & he would call back.
My mom would joke about some of the various topics that my brother chose to talk about during phone conversations. Sometimes he would call late at night to ask for a certain recipe. My mom & I always got a great laugh over those calls.
There’s so much more to share about my brother. Hard to sum it up in 1000 characters. We will miss his wittiness, his hugs & his wonderfully tender smile that said how much he loved being in the moment. His sense of humor made my heart so huge & that’s what will sustain me. He lives on in all of us. Thank you Marko for giving us the gift of you.
We send our condolences knowing that Mark had a kind and generous nature. He will be greatly missed by all especially the “HO”.
I love u so much Uncle Mark and will miss u all the time. I will always remember all the good times we shared especially all of those crazy hiking adventures we used to go on with kelsey when i was younger. I would like to thank you for helping raising me, you had a big part of my life and making me the man I am today. You taught me manners and how to be on my best behavior. I will always miss the fun we shared and all the adventures we had. Thank you for letting me be apart of your life. You and Kelly are my favorite uncles even though we arent blood related, blood wouldnt make us any closer. So thank you for being there when ive needed you and even though your off to a better place you will still be there when I need you in spirit. Take care and I know you always will be looking over me and dont worry I will never forget you.
Love always,
Billy Tarnecki
Kelly sorry for your great loss. Mark was a fun loving, caring, and generous person who will be greatly missed. He was always concerned about everyones well being. We will miss the joyful times that we had together, and the friend that we just didn’t get enough time to spend with. Forever your friends Daryl Mclean and Neil Zboyovsky
i cant say in a thousand words exactly how mark touched not only my life but my entire family’s life. mark you were my kids other parent, i know without you my kids wouldnt have had half the expeiriences they have had and wouldnt be the well mannered respeceful kids they are. mark you were more than just a friend you were our family. i miss my big brother, i hope you are watching over us cause my kids arent done growing up and im relying on you to help me out. there wont be a day that goes by that i wont be thinking about you. i love you bro!!!!! Bill
Mark, it’s hard to believe that it’s coming up on 15 years since I lost you…Not a day goes by that I don’t think of you and wish you were still here. Rest in Peace my love 🙁