Mark was an extremely kind, curious, hard-working man who never met a stranger. More than anything, he was steadfast in his dedication to his roles as a father, husband, granddaddy, and friend during his life.
After graduating from Austin High School, he joined the U.S. Air Force from 1952 to 1956. The Air Force provided Mark the education to start work with the Texas Air National Guard as an Aircraft Engine Mechanic Foreman at Ellington Air Force Base, working his way up to Senior Master Sargent. During the same time, he was an active member of the Air National Guard Reserve. He retired in May of 1989 after serving for 34 years.
Mark married the love of his life, Jodi St. Cyr, in 1959, and they resided in Friendswood where they raised their two children in the home they built, where Mark still lived in until he passed. Mark and Jodi were married 55 years until her death in April of 2015.
Mark was very curious by nature and had many interests and hobbies during his life. He was a self-taught auto mechanic and spent many weekends working on cars for his friends and family. He always wanted to learn Spanish, and after retiring, he went to college for four semesters to learn the language. He and Jodi took numerous road trips to Mexico (Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende were two of their favorite destinations). Mark never missed an opportunity to speak Spanish or help someone who was trying to learn English. Many of his Spanish-speaking friends called him Marcos. He was still texting and speaking in Spanish up until he passed.
Mark and Jodi were regular volunteers at the Houston International Seafarers Center, where they met many lifelong friends who resided all over the world. Mark also had an enormous amount of pride in being from Houston’s East End, known for its diverse culture, thriving arts scene, and Mexican eateries on Navigation Boulevard (where he could enjoy his favorites: salsa and chopped onions with chips). Mark was also a Ham radio operator before cell phones, and a proud member of Ace in the Hole Retirees.
Mark had a tremendous heart for people. He was always going out of his way to help people and learn more about where they came from and how they got to where they are. He made the people in his life feel heard and special. Numerous men who worked for him at the Texas Air National Guard stayed in touch with him over the years, having kept so much admiration and respect for him as a leader and then friend.
Mark also had a great love of nature. He enjoyed the outdoors and would regularly feed peanuts to squirrels at the park and in his yard, which is a memory many of his grandchildren hold close to their hearts.
He is preceded in death by his wife, Jodi St. Cyr, his parents, Louis and Irene St. Cyr, his brother, Roland Hart "Buck" St. Cyr, his sister Jeanne Rymiller, and sister Jacqueline St. Cyr. He is survived by his children, Robert Michael St. Cyr and Melissa (Paul) St. Cyr-Kenney, his grandchildren, Nekol St. Cyr, She'lah St. Cyr-Rhodes, Kristopher St. Cyr, Kayla (Morris) Norman, Kristina (Sean) Lockridge, and Michaela St. Cyr. He also had 13 great grandchildren.
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