Mark Harrington

Mark Steven Harrington, age 70, passed away on September 16, 2024, at his Apple Valley, MN home with his wife, Kay, by his side. Mark fought like a warrior during his year long battle with acute myeloid leukemia.

Mark is preceded in death by his parents, Tom and Joan Harrington and brother-in-law, Ricardo Gonzalo. He is survived by his wife, Kay; sisters, Cathy Harrington, Alice Gonzalo and Jane Harrington; nieces, Michele Eggers and Dawn Radecki (Chris); and great-nieces, Abby, Katie, Aly and Libby, and great-nephew, Wes.

Mark was born to Tom and Joan Harrington on May 5, 1954, in St. Paul, Minnesota and grew up on the East Side of St. Paul. He graduated from Harding High School in 1972. Mark grew up in a family that embraced being active in outdoor activities that included skiing, skating, swimming, and camping. Tom and Joan took their kids on camping vacations all over the United States and yearly summer vacations to Deer Lake in Minnesota where the Harrington kids wore out the lake during their time at the cabin. Mark's father, Tom, was a huge influence on Mark's interest and participation in skiing and Tom started to teach Mark how to alpine ski at the age of 18 months. Mark with skis on his feet was what he knew and loved, and he took this love to new heights when he followed in his father's footsteps by joining the St. Paul Ski Club and took up ski jumping. His wife, Kay, had the distinct pleasure of seeing Mark participate in his last jump back in 1976. Mark followed his passion for skiing by moving to Colorado in 1977. Once in Colorado, he discovered that there was so much more than alpine skiing and he quickly added cross-country skiing, car camping and backpacking to his list of passions. He not only loved those activities, but he loved those mountains. Mark's primary occupations had been as a land surveyor and then in the field of geographic information systems (GIS). Both were perfect occupations for Mark because he loved all things that involved maps. He ended his career working in the field of GIS at Colorado Department of Transportation and retired on May 31, 2019. Mark lived in Colorado for 42 years from 1977 to 2019. In 2019, he relocated with his wife, Kay, back to Minnesota.

Mark and Kay met on a blind date on September 27, 1975, when Kay was 18 and Mark was 21. That young love lasted until 1977 when they went their separate ways with Mark relocating to Colorado and Kay continuing with her new life as a legal secretary living on her own in Minnesota. Later in life they reconnected, fell in love again and began building this new relationship with 1000 miles of corn separating them. They eliminated that long distance between them when Kay relocated to Colorado in 2010. Mark and Kay married in St. Paul, Minnesota on September 15, 2012. They were given 12 years of marriage together and Mark passed away the day after they celebrated their 12th anniversary. They made the most of those years together and loved traveling, alpine and cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, biking, camping, home improvement projects, hanging out on their patio and by the firepit, talking for hours, cooking dinners together, Dress for Dinner nights, going to live theater productions, and watching TV together with Mark enjoying listening to his wife's Kaymentary throughout the program.

All who knew Mark will keep in their hearts and minds Mark's passion for the things he loved, his joy in life, sense of humor, his laugh, and that sweet and engaging smile.

A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, at Mueller Memorial, 835 Johnson Parkway, St. Paul, MN, 55106 with gathering from 3:00 to 4:00, memorial service 4:00 to 5:00 and social time with a meal immediately following at the same location as the memorial service. A private family interment will take place at Riverview Cemetery in West St. Paul on Thursday, October 3, 2024.

The memorial service was recorded and available to watch below.

In lieu of flowers, Kay asks that cards and donations be made directly to her, and she will distribute per discussions with Mark and his wishes.