Obituary for Mark Kenneth Louder
Mark Kenneth Louder
September 4, 1964 - March 24, 2023
Our Dad
The first thing he’d want everyone to know about him is that his greatest accomplishment in life was his family. A marriage of 37 years. Four kids, and their spouses who he loved like his own. And his crowning achievement - the 11 babies who called him “Pappy.” Of all the things he did in this life, being Pappy was the thing he excelled at most effortlessly. Even with a family this size, where it would be easy to get lost in the chaos, every single one of us - all 20 - knew just how much he adored us. The times when this big, beautiful family that he created with our Mom could all be together - holidays, vacations, summer days by the pool, lazy weekends with all of the kids running around - those times were his favorite.
Dad’s favorite places to be were his workshop or his garden. There was always a job to be done. He had notebooks full of to-do lists, and meticulously recorded every garden haul.
Dad was a scientist. He worked his tail off throughout his career - always in pursuit of answers that would make the world a better, healthier place. He had the worst road rage of any person I’d ever known, but I guess that’s what 30+ years of rush hour traffic in the DC area will do to a man.
Dad loved tie-dye, lava lamps, and all things groovy. He was famous for his eccentric catch phrases - if you got a “dig it!” or “terrif!” you knew he was truly pleased. He had plenty of catch phrases for when he was quite displeased, but we’ll keep those a family secret in the interest of keeping this g-rated. If you knew him well, you know.
He was the consummate recycler. Not just because he kept his garbage cans pristine - and nothing could irritate him quite like someone mixing up the trash and recycling, or, heaven forbid, throwing an un-rinsed object into his recycling can, but because he kept *everything* for a rainy day. If you went to him and said “I need something for ______,” he’d take you to his workshop and either pull out an item he’d been saving for just this occasion, or rig something up for you. There was no problem he couldn’t solve.
He was a meat and cheese connoisseur. There is no amount of money that man wouldn’t spend to give us the best Christmas charcuterie spread a person has ever seen. Mom would roll her eyes when she saw the receipt, but she never tried to put a stop to it - that would’ve been a futile effort.
Music was an escape for him. He loved Rush, Journey, Clapton, Pink Floyd, The Who…and so many more. It’s a gift he shared with all of us, a gift that will keep us connected to him forever.
We said goodbye to our Dad on Friday, March 24. He wasn’t ready to leave us, and we weren’t ready to let go. We’re going to hurt pretty big for a while, but we’re going to huddle close to each other and cry and be angry and also laugh and be so damn thankful that he was ours. We’ll spend time in his shop talking about how much we’re going to miss every crazy, ridiculous, hilarious thing about him. And we’re going to talk about him constantly so that all of these little ones feel him always. We’re going to love each other the way he loved us, because it’s exactly what he wanted. We won’t let him down.
He made it quite clear that when his time came, he didn’t want a big fuss, but a party instead.
Family and friends are invited to join us in Mark’s garage on April 22 beginning at 3pm. Don your favorite tie-dye and come drink a beer with us and remember Mark. We know there will be plenty of happy memories to share.
September 4, 1964 - March 24, 2023
Our Dad
The first thing he’d want everyone to know about him is that his greatest accomplishment in life was his family. A marriage of 37 years. Four kids, and their spouses who he loved like his own. And his crowning achievement - the 11 babies who called him “Pappy.” Of all the things he did in this life, being Pappy was the thing he excelled at most effortlessly. Even with a family this size, where it would be easy to get lost in the chaos, every single one of us - all 20 - knew just how much he adored us. The times when this big, beautiful family that he created with our Mom could all be together - holidays, vacations, summer days by the pool, lazy weekends with all of the kids running around - those times were his favorite.
Dad’s favorite places to be were his workshop or his garden. There was always a job to be done. He had notebooks full of to-do lists, and meticulously recorded every garden haul.
Dad was a scientist. He worked his tail off throughout his career - always in pursuit of answers that would make the world a better, healthier place. He had the worst road rage of any person I’d ever known, but I guess that’s what 30+ years of rush hour traffic in the DC area will do to a man.
Dad loved tie-dye, lava lamps, and all things groovy. He was famous for his eccentric catch phrases - if you got a “dig it!” or “terrif!” you knew he was truly pleased. He had plenty of catch phrases for when he was quite displeased, but we’ll keep those a family secret in the interest of keeping this g-rated. If you knew him well, you know.
He was the consummate recycler. Not just because he kept his garbage cans pristine - and nothing could irritate him quite like someone mixing up the trash and recycling, or, heaven forbid, throwing an un-rinsed object into his recycling can, but because he kept *everything* for a rainy day. If you went to him and said “I need something for ______,” he’d take you to his workshop and either pull out an item he’d been saving for just this occasion, or rig something up for you. There was no problem he couldn’t solve.
He was a meat and cheese connoisseur. There is no amount of money that man wouldn’t spend to give us the best Christmas charcuterie spread a person has ever seen. Mom would roll her eyes when she saw the receipt, but she never tried to put a stop to it - that would’ve been a futile effort.
Music was an escape for him. He loved Rush, Journey, Clapton, Pink Floyd, The Who…and so many more. It’s a gift he shared with all of us, a gift that will keep us connected to him forever.
We said goodbye to our Dad on Friday, March 24. He wasn’t ready to leave us, and we weren’t ready to let go. We’re going to hurt pretty big for a while, but we’re going to huddle close to each other and cry and be angry and also laugh and be so damn thankful that he was ours. We’ll spend time in his shop talking about how much we’re going to miss every crazy, ridiculous, hilarious thing about him. And we’re going to talk about him constantly so that all of these little ones feel him always. We’re going to love each other the way he loved us, because it’s exactly what he wanted. We won’t let him down.
He made it quite clear that when his time came, he didn’t want a big fuss, but a party instead.
Family and friends are invited to join us in Mark’s garage on April 22 beginning at 3pm. Don your favorite tie-dye and come drink a beer with us and remember Mark. We know there will be plenty of happy memories to share.