Donald Mark

Donald Lynn Mark, 67, of Iola, Kansas, died Thursday, May 29, in Iola of a stroke. Don was born in Chanute, Kansas, on March 9, 1947. He was the oldest son of Earl J. and Wilma R. (Roberts) Mark. He grew up in Yates Center, Kansas, where he graduated from Yates Center High School in 1965. After high school, he attended Allen County Community College, graduating in 1967 with an Associate degree. He continued his education at Emporia State University earning a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education in 1969. Early in his career, Don taught in the Topeka, Kansas, and the Blue Rapids, Kansas, public schools. Later, Don worked as an inspector during the construction of the Wolf Creek Nuclear Power Plant at Strawn, Kansas and for NCS Pearson Government Solutions in Lawrence, Kansas. He returned to education, first as a tutor helping students earn a GED, then later as a substitute teacher at several area schools in southeast Kansas, before retiring for health reasons. Don had held a private pilot's license and loved flying. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church, Iola, Kansas. Don was preceded in death by his parents and is survived by his brother, Wayne Mark, of Bixby, Oklahoma. Services in his memory will be held at 10:00 a.m. Monday, June 9, 2014, at the First Presbyterian Church in Iola. Burial following the services will be at 11:15 a.m. in the family plot at Yates Center Cemetery, Yates Center, Kansas. Memorials may be made to the First Presbyterian Church, Iola, Kansas or to the First Presbyterian Church, Yates Center, Kansas. Memorial gifts may be left with the Waugh-Yokum & Friskel Memorial Chapel of Iola, which is in charge of arrangements. To sign the guest book online or leave a condolence, go to www.iolafuneral.com .