Mark Alan McCammon

Mark Alan McCammon was born on a bright Saturday morning, March 13, 1965, in the bustling West Texas town known as Pecos. Sadly, he died in his sleep on April 14, 2023, at the age of 58. In between these events, his kindness and his absolute uniqueness touched more lives than we can count.

Most of Mark’s early years were spent growing up in Odessa, Texas. However, in 1970, Mark’s family moved to Dallas, where he lived for the next 30 years. After Mark graduated from L.V. Berkner High School in 1983, he pursued his college degree at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. Despite being a founding member of the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity, Mark actually discovered the fine art of studying while a student at Tech. In fact, he found that he had such a passion for real estate finance, he even managed to make the Dean’s List. Mark graduated with a BBA in Finance in the Winter of 1987 and began an extremely successful career in commercial real estate.

Mark’s early professional life was a blueprint for learning real estate and climbing the ladder of success. He started at the bottom and methodically worked his way up. Mark’s first job out of college was with Hall Financial Group where he was responsible for investor relations and for syndications encompassing 2.0 million square feet of office space. He later joined the Hopkins-Schafer Company where he branched out into retail property leasing, management, and development. In 1990, Mark joined The Hampstead Group and was solely responsible for all real estate assets, including the company’s property management affiliate. Mark also delved into mergers and acquisitions (M&A) as well as structuring debt and equity transactions. While he was a virtual master using Excel spreadsheets, it was Mark’s intuitive ability to understand complex real estate transactions and then explain and market them with his infectious personality. Mark was indeed gifted when it came to commercial real estate transactions.

Wanting to pursue more challenging projects, Mark took a position in 2000 with JMI Realty, Inc. in San Diego, California. After having moved to Del Mar, CA, Mark was involved in projects such as the redevelopment of properties around the new San Diego Padres ballpark downtown, including the four-star Omni San Diego Hotel. Eventually, Mark and another partner spun off all of JMI’s multi-family development into a company called Casoleil Residential.

Unexpectedly, Mark “retired” from the real estate finance profession and chose to pursue other creative interests. At first, Mark immersed himself in the music production industry, promoting a young and talented artist, Jared Sagal. Mark also traveled, climbing Machu Pichu in Peru, and … Later, Mark diverted his focus to becoming a competition-level marksman, entering several pistol marksmanship matches. Whatever Mark tried, he committed himself with absolute wonderment and enthusiasm. In December 2008, Mark relocated to Austin for several years before finally moving back to Dallas in 2014. Since then, he has been a beloved resident of the Design District until his death earlier this month.

For those who had ever heard Mark’s booming laugh, they also know how incredibly kind he could be. He was always the champion of the underdog and willing to help, sometimes overly generous with his money, time, and attention. Mark didn’t just believe in helping people, he demonstrated it day in and day out.

Mark is survived by his loving mother, Cecilia Jan Sullivan, his devoted sister Donna Lynn Parker and his admiring brother, Michael Ray Kennedy.

Mark’s ashes will be shared amongst these family members and mingled with those of his closest and most faithful companion, Bebe