John L. Marks

(Please Note: It is a challenge to write an obituary for someone who was never inclined to be the center of attention).John L. Marks, DVM, age 56, walked on Thursday, July 12th, 2018. He died at home in the presence of loved ones. He was a husband, big brother, little brother, son, uncle, son-in-law, brother-in-law, cousin, and friend.John was born on February 3, 1962, to Leonard and Dorothy Taitt Marks and raised in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. He graduated from the UW- Madison with his undergraduate and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degrees (Graduated 1989). John first practiced in New Glarus. From there, he moved on to practice large animal medicine at Sauk Prairie Veterinary Clinic. His career concluded as the Senior Veterinarian for the State of Wisconsin's Rural Electric Power Services Program.He was one of those fortunate few whose occupations are their passion. It was his life-long dream to be a veterinarian. And as much as he loved animals, he had the heart and soul of a farmer. Throughout the 3 years he battled Stage IV colorectal cancer, one of his biggest concerns after chemo, radiation, surgeries and long hospital stays was that his hands were becoming too soft and he wanted his calluses back.As much as he enjoyed practicing medicine, research, teaching, and writing, he cherished his ability to work with his hands. He taught Sketch-Up classes at Woodcrafters in Madison. He built his dream wood-working shop three years ago. Those who received gifts and furniture from John are among the fortunate! He got a lot of joy from restoring a 1948 Ferguson TO-20 tractor. He never read manuals; he would just sit on an upside-down bucket, staring at the machine until the answer came to him. John called it "doing a Lenny." (This was a nod to his father, a WWII staff sergeant in the motor pool in North Africa).John was a true renaissance man. He was a childhood survivor, scientist-veterinarian, consummate reader, chef, Badger, Brewer and Packer fan, outdoorsman, and athlete. He even biked the twenty-six-mile trip to his chemotherapy appointments and participated in "The Ride" to benefit the UW Carbone Cancer Center, during which he out-rode most of his siblings and nieces/nephews the past two years.He was kind, gentle, humble, generous, stubborn, principled and stubborn (this was intentionally mentioned twice). There were several things in his life that could have made him bitter and jaded, but he made a conscious choice to look forward and he believed there were better things to come, as long as he was open to the possibilities.John leaves giant holes in the hearts and lives of his loving wife and soulmate, Heather, whom he married on September 7, 2013, mother, siblings Ronald (Betty), Carol, Dale (Denise), Sally (Gary) and James (Danielle), mother-in-law Valerie, nieces and nephews, cousins, friends, colleagues, very special neighbors and his dog, Nextie. He was preceded in death by his father, Leonard, his great uncle Julius (Uncle Sue) Nelson, and his dogs, Cinder, Ringo, Ally, and Jeanne.Special thanks go to the UW Oncology, Surgery and Interventional Radiology departments, especially Drs. Sam Lubner and Skip Foley, nurses Steve, Lisa, Becky and Adam. Per John's wishes there will be no service, but there will be a celebration of John's life at a later date.Donations in John's name are welcomed to the Dane County Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center and Heifer International. The Redlin Funeral Home is assisting the family."Rest! Cries the chief sawyer and we pause for breath." Aldo Leopold (A Sand County Almanac)Mangide'e!