Sad News

We received some sad news today. Ken's niece, Shellie, called to say that her dad, Ken's older brother, Gordon, had passed away last night. We had been expecting the news, since his health had been deteriorating and he had been in hospice care at home, but it is still hard news to hear. Ken will be flying to Michigan on Sunday to attend the services on Monday.

Obituary for Mr. Gordon "Gordy" Arnold Marks

Mr. Gordon “Gordy” A. Marks, age 82, passed away Wednesday, October 10, 2012 at his home. He was born March 24, 1930 in Muskegon to Albert and Gertrude (Kempker) Marks and was a life resident of the area. On February 3, 1951, he married the former Janet M. Hassett in Muskegon and she preceded him in death on October 7, 2006. Gordy worked as a truck driver for Thill Oil Company and retired from Brenner Oil Company in 2001. He enjoyed fishing at his cottage and traveling to see his girls. SURVIVORS include 6 children, Katharyn (James Klimaski) Marks of Silver Spring, MD, Pamela (James) Fitzsimmons of North Muskegon, Linda (Ronald) Shafer of Newport, NC, Michelle Marks of Pasadena, TX, Michael Marks of Roosevelt Park, Patrick (Jeannie) Marks of Twin Lake; 8 grandchildren, Jacob, Megan, Patrick Jr., Chelsea, Karah, Brittany, Phylisha, and Gracyn; step-mother, Geraldine Marks of Dunedin, FL; 1 brother, Kenneth (Lee) Marks of Mission, TX; 1 sister, Romain Vandenberg of Allendale, MI; and special friends, Jean Stone and Judy Jacobs. A MEMORIAL SERVICE will be held 11:00 AM Monday, October 15, 2012 at The Walburn Chapel, 1547 W. Sherman Blvd., (231) 759-8565 with Pastor David Selleck officiating. VISITATION will be held one hour prior, 10-11 AM Monday. IN LIEU OF FLOWERS, memorial contributions may be directed to Harbor Hospice

Meanwhile, we proceeded with our planned move to Mt. Pleasant, TX, where we have an appointment in the morning to talk with a company that may be able to cut down the sides on our truck bed to give us more clearance for the fifth wheel overhang. We're spending the night tonight in the Walmart parking lot.

Chris called tonight. It was good to hear his voice. He said that Ed will be in Portland next week, and they're picking him up at the airport to go to dinner. I also got a chance to talk with Anara. She told me that she had joined a cooking club at school. Their first project was making a stir fry.


It looks like we'll be going back to Lake Lewisville in the morning, if we can get in, which we expect that we will be able to. That way we'll be close to DFW for Ken's flights. If we decide to have the truck modified in Mt. Pleasant, we'll have to schedule the work for later in the month.