Obituary of Mark Stewart

It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden death of Mark Lindsay Stewart on December 9, 2020. He was 58. Born in Windsor on April 28,1962, Mark was the eldest son of Joyce (Jody) Stewart and Robert (Bob) Stewart (2017). Mark is survived by the love of his life and true soulmate, Margo, as well as mother Jody, brothers John (Lei), Peter (Lori) and sister Nicola (Don) and their children Logan and Nathan; Nicola, Dylan and Nicolas; and Jake and Ryan. Dearly missed by his aunt Sarah Turnbull and uncle Brian Wilson; John Turnbull and John Caira (Aunt Grace 2019) and cousins Benjamin and Nicholas (Barbara) and their son Grayson; the McKelvey cousins Mary (Ian), Karen (James) and John; the Dodds cousins Mike, Bill, and Gerry (Lorie). Mark is greatly missed by Margo's family Joan Dimmick (Gerry 2018), Gerald, Meghan (Lewis) and their children Hamish, Clementine, Matilda and Susannah and Jake (Jen) and their daughter Mersea. Also, his Skye in the prairies and his good friend Steven Cameron. Mark and Margo liked watching the telly, were film buffs, golfing partners, traveling companions and avid sports participants and fans (not always the same team). They followed their football teams and March Madness with great enthusiasm. Mark was delighted but humble about his four holes-in-one and greatly enjoyed his golfing, football and movie buddies. He also liked the theatre and had many fun outings with friends and family over the years, including recent trips to Stratford with his darlings, serenading them with songs from the Sound of Music the entire way there. He loved words, crosswords, Boggle and Beowulf. His favourite was Scrabble and his fiercest opponent was his mum. A cottage visit was never complete unless they had a game. The cottage was always a special place filled with fun, food and family. Mark was an important original founding member of the family safety committee. Camping was an adventure and boating even more so. He was an uncle par excellence. The kids meant the world to him. He enjoyed their many different interests, whether it was music, sports, games or books. He could really PLAY. He was so very proud of them. He was also a long-time sponsor of his international kids. His newspaper family was an important part of his life. Past and present they were more than colleagues, they were his friends. Mark started out as a copy boy at the Windsor Star but prior to that he attended Hugh Beaton, Harrow senior public school and Harrow high school. He also attended the University of Windsor and Wilfred Laurier. He received a journalism diploma from St. Clair College and a passion was born. Mark excelled as a journalist whether it was as a reporter, photographer, editor or someone to help hold up the bar at the press club. He won awards and he truly shone as an editor. A close colleague wrote, "I can't imagine someone of his calibre ever gracing the editing rim again at the Windsor Star." After his start at the Windsor Star, he was hired by the Stratford Beacon Herald where he worked as a reporter and made fabulous friendships. He returned to the Windsor Star to work as a reporter/photographer. He was the police/court reporter followed by a lengthy period as the assistant sports editor. In 2014, he became the night news editor. Mark cared very deeply about the newspaper and nothing but his best effort would do. This became increasingly difficult with cutbacks and constantly being short-staffed. He continued to put his heart into it. He will be greatly missed. Mark had become increasingly handy, he built a fabulous deck with his dad and brothers and this fall he re-did the gardens and built new steps with his nephew. He was energetic, smart, engaged, compassionate and caring. In our family he was the King of Maitland. He was an East Beach Blackdog. He was our family photographer and our go-to guy for so many things. We are all devastated by his death. Thank you to everyone for all your kind, heartfelt words and thoughts. Alan Price wrote: "If you have a friend on whom you think you can rely, you are a lucky man." Mark made us all lucky. In Mark's memory, donations to the World Wildlife Fund, Amnesty International or Downtown Mission would be much appreciated. Arrangements entrusted to Simple Choice (Kingsville) 519-254-2585. Online condolences and cherished memories may be shared with the family at www.simplechoicecremation.ca.