It's been almost two weeks since some of Mark's family and I placed his ashes in Corpus Christi Bay (photos here) on April 11, followed by a come-and-go reception - "Gresham's Freebie" - the next day (photos here).
Former co-workers who attended the latter were Bob Heil (Mark's and my co-worker in Budget; later with Park and Recreation), Jennie Duran (my boss when I was with Information Services), Judy Dreyer (my co-worker in Park and Recreation), Pat Menville (Mark's co-worker in Budget), Ed (Ray) Menville (Traffic Engineering), and Tomas Duran (Personnel). There were a number of other co-workers who were unable to attend, but they sent the following messages:
From Michael Gunning:
"I have been thinking of Mark and the great times we had, especially fishing in his pontoon boat on the Laguna Madre. ...
You're the best thing that happened to Mark."
[After five years as a city planner with the City of El Paso, Michael Gunning joined the City of Corpus Christi as a planner in 1973. He became Director of Planning and Development in 1998, and was Assistant and then Acting Director of Development Services (Planning, Engineering, Building Inspections and Permits) 2003-2007.]
Above: Mark fishing on what may be the pontoon boat Michael refers to - photo taken sometime between April and October, 1974.
Below: Michael Gunning after a fishing trip, photo by Mark Gresham, undated, but sometime between 1974 and 1985.
A toast from Chuck Speed:
"Here is to the good memories in Corpus Christi when we were young professionals at the old City Hall on the Bay and embraced life like there was no tomorrow. May Mark rest in peace and remind us of him when we see the sailboats in Corpus Christi Bay."
[Chuck was the Director of Personnel / Human Resources and Civil Service
October 1971 - April 2000 for the City of Corpus Christi, followed by the City of Amarillo starting in 1984. He met his wife Cynthia while she was also working for the City's Utilities Department.]
Above: view of west and south sides of [old] City Hall on Shoreline Drive [the Bay], Corpus Christi, Texas. From Penick, Monica, and Carol Wood: "Memorial Coliseum, Corpus Christi, Nueces County, Texas." National Register of Historic Places nomination (draft; building demolished), 2010. On file with the Texas Historical Commission.
Below: Kerry and Randy Moravec, sometime before April 1980, Corpus Christi, Texas.
From Randy Moravec:
"Mark was a wonderful supervisor. He treated the budget & management group as a team. His had more of a mission-driven rather than rule-driven style, giving us general direction and then letting us pursue assignments with freedom. He always gave constructive criticism and I don't recall him ever chastising me, or any other team member, for how we conducted ourselves. He had a wonderful perspective of government, and gave us the opportunity to work directly with Marvin Townsend, the most intelligent city manager I ever encountered.
Steve Craven and I arrived at the city about the same time and one of my favorite memories was when Pat [Menville], looking over her glasses, with a cigarette in her hand told us something like: "Mark said one of you was very intelligent and one of you had a great sense of humor; I can't tell which one of you possesses those characteristics." Although that statement could have been taken as neither one of us was intelligent or humorous, the way she said it caused me to laugh out loud.
My time in Corpus Christi provided me with a great foundation for my 35 years in municipal government. I was with the city for only 3 and a half years, but my next job was finance director at Kingsville; an incredible opportunity so early in my career."
[Randy was with Kingsville for seven years, also serving as an assistant city manager, and went on to serve as the chief financial officer for the Town of Addison for 24.5 years.]
From Pinkney Butler:
"Mark was such an accomplished person. I learned so much from him while in the Budget Office & really liked his management style. He supported us in an exemplary sort of way. A great human being with a calm coolness about him.
I worked with Oscar [Martinez], Mary [Comstock], Bob [Heil] and Gale [Garrett, all in the Budget Office] from around 1980-1983 before coming to Tyler."
[Pinkney worked his way up in Tyler to become City Manager in 1997, and retired in 2003.]
Above: Excerpt from an article in the September 1983 "Corpus Christi Magazine."
Below: Plaque on the large framed aerial photo of Corpus Christi and the Marina given to Mark by the Budget Office staff when he left the city in August 1985.
From Pat Menville (who WAS able to come):
"He definitely had a zest for life and enjoyed a great career. Back in the day when I worked for him alongside Mary [Comstock] and Randy [Moravec], we worked hard and we also played hard. I feel we were all justifiably proud of the dedicated service we provided the citizens of Corpus Christi. I very much remember his passion for sailing and was glad to read that he continued that over the years. We never have enough time with those we care about, but they live on in our memories and, in Mark's case, through the mentorship he provided all of us during our careers."
And after the event, she posted:
"We had a lovely getaway this weekend to celebrate the life of someone we worked with many decades ago when we were all young and idealistic. We worked hard, we played hard, and believed in a world of vast possibilities. It was amazing to see old friends and meet new ones."
[Pat Reyna Menville worked for the City of Corpus Christi from about 1967 until about 1979. She started in the collection department (traffic tickets), moved over to Accounting, then on to Engineering and finally into Budget. Her husband Ed (Ray) Menville also worked for the City (that's where they met!) as Assistant Traffic Engineer before becoming Director of Engineering in Victoria in 1981 and Director of Public Works in West University Place in 1991. They retired in 2001.]
Photos of Mark over the years are here - this online album is a work in progress, with more to be added.
