Obituary for Mark Allan Davidson
Mark Allan Davidson, 66, of Southampton, NJ was released from his earthly pain, peacefully, in his sleep, on Thursday, Jan 20, 2022. Mark was born in Biloxi, MS on January 7, 1956, to the late Mildred (Lee) and Richard Davidson. He was predeceased by his brother, Richard and his sister, Martha. His favorite dog, Penny, welcomed him to heaven also.
Mark had a wonderful childhood growing up in Marshall’s Corner. He had many stories about his escapades with his siblings and friends while his dad was away on flights. They tried to keep their exploits on the down low, so that they wouldn’t have to hear his mom say, “Wait until your father gets home!” (not always successfully). His parents’ garage was one of his favorite places. He started driving when he was 9 years old and has been in love with cars ever since. When we moved back to Jersey, he was astonished to see that his driver’s license number was the same as the farm license number he got way back in the 60’s! He spent many happy hours at the New Egypt Raceway, legally and illegally. The man traded cars often and some of his favorites were his ‘67 Camaro, his Pontiac GTO (the Judge), and his old International Scout. He almost always had a pick-up truck too, the last one the Dodge Ram he was driving when he had the spinal cord injury that changed his life so much.
Mark went to Allentown (NJ) High School and was mightily annoyed that his parents chose to move back to Mississippi between his junior and senior years, after his dad retired from the USAF. His mother’s brother owned a seafood restaurant there and that helped ease the pain a little bit. His dad had a gas station there and Mark worked there to make money for college. He was the best bagger at Jerry Lee’s and was taught by Jerry Lee himself. He also worked on shrimp boats and had a job on a research vessel that made port in Africa. He brought his sisters’ dashikis from there made by a boy who carried a sewing machine on a strap around his neck.
Mark spent some time at Purdue working on his degree and working with his brother, Rick, for their uncle George Davidson renovating low-income apartments. One of the funniest stories about that time was when he talked about Rick using a garden hose to breathe through when they were fumigating the apartments and Mark’s nephew (Rick’s son) stopping up the end of garden hose intermittently until Rick came running out the apartment red-faced and breathless.
Mark also went to the University of South Alabama but ran out of money to finish his degree. It was after that that he hired on at Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula. After he had been there a while, he joined an inaugural group of nearly 100 people to be trained to be Health Physic Technicians during overhauling and refueling nuclear submarines. The training period was six months but equivalent to an associate degree. It was a math and science curriculum based on Navships 389-0288, and if you failed any of the near daily tests you were out. Mark, having been a stellar student all his life (with the exception of the C he got in handwriting in elementary school) was one of few who made it all the way through. It was there that he met his future wife, Margaret Lynn Thomas, about whom he told a classmate that “I’m going to marry that girl,” thereby failing horribly to fulfill what he wanted to be when his mother asked him what he was going to be when he grew up, his answer was “a bachelor!”
Mark and Margaret were married on August 26, 1978, and left soon after to begin his many years working in the nuclear power industry. Mark had jobs at nearly all the nuclear plants in the U.S. with many different companies. He started as a Rad-Con Monitor and ended up as a Project Manager. Along the way he did planning/scheduling, MOV, Fukushima, and much more, but his main strengths were troubleshooting, problem-solving, and mentoring. No one could dispute that he was a great manager of jobs and people. He remembered birthdays, work anniversaries, and his people’s kids’ names. He gave his all to anything he undertook at work. He always “rode for the brand.”
After having three 2nd trimester miscarriages, he and Margaret decided to become foster parents. Little did they know that they would care for a 17-month-old boy that Mark “took one look at (him) and fell in love,” whom they adopted when he was 4 years old. He is survived by his son, Dakota Ray Davidson, at home.
On February 18, 2016, Mark suffered a spinal cord injury caused by a lymphoma tumor compressing his spinal cord. Although emergency surgery removed the tumor, the damage was done, and he was paralyzed from the waist down. That was only the beginning of years of chemo, radiation, rehab, complications, and a recurrence of lymphoma. God only knows how he kept his spirits up but he managed for a long time. He might be feeling lousy but when the phone rang and it was one of his friends, they were greeted with “Hey, man, how’s it going?”
Mark was a wonderful provider for his family. He always made sure his family had everything they needed and more. But after his injury, Margaret heard him many times tell his friends not to let work consume them, to take the time to do things with your family to make memories because no one knows how long they will be able to do that. He wanted to make sure that no one else had that regret.
Mark was a lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan and he always wanted to see them play in Texas Stadium. Mark and Margaret finally got tickets and planned a trip to fly to Dallas to see the Cowboys play the hated Eagles, the year of the strike! Needless to say, that trip was cancelled. He loved the game of football and spent many happy hours watching the games, dissecting them with his brother Joe, and razzing and being razzed in return by his friends.
Mark was smart and funny, but mostly he was a “helper.” He got no greater joy than by helping others. Whether it was taking care of his younger siblings when they were kids, or helping colleagues at work, or making strangers’ wishes for Christmas come true, or rescuing people on the side of the road with flat tires or engine trouble, or researching solutions for family and friends’ needs or problems- he loved helping those who needed help. Sometimes he didn’t know when to quit, but always, always, always it was because he wanted to make the lives of others better.
Besides his wife and son, he leaves his brothers Brad (Mary) of Salome AZ and Joe (Tamara) of New Orleans, LA, and his sisters Theresa (Dennis) Clay of Arcadia, FL, and Janna (Jeff) Stevenor of Ft. Eustis, VA; nephews and nieces, Stan Davidson, Katie Carbone, Anna Jacobs, and Laura Clay; Richard Davidson III, Kyle Davidson, Becky and Lizzie Davidson, Andy and Kevin Spivey, and Lisa Thomas; his sister-in-law Vera Davidson and brother-in-law John Spivey. He will also be missed by his good friends, Don Ackerman, Joe Nachtwey and Pen Kester. His friend, Suzanne (Baylies) Phillips could always be counted on by Mark to reminisce with him about growing up together and answer his late-night texts. Suzanne was also invaluable in providing respite for Margaret for the first few years after his injury, traveling to PA many times to stay with him.
Mark chose cremation and his remains will be distributed in the places he loved. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date at the Lookout House in Drums, PA, where he spent many memorable times.
In lieu of flowers, please be a helper to anyone who needs it in his honor.
Mark had a wonderful childhood growing up in Marshall’s Corner. He had many stories about his escapades with his siblings and friends while his dad was away on flights. They tried to keep their exploits on the down low, so that they wouldn’t have to hear his mom say, “Wait until your father gets home!” (not always successfully). His parents’ garage was one of his favorite places. He started driving when he was 9 years old and has been in love with cars ever since. When we moved back to Jersey, he was astonished to see that his driver’s license number was the same as the farm license number he got way back in the 60’s! He spent many happy hours at the New Egypt Raceway, legally and illegally. The man traded cars often and some of his favorites were his ‘67 Camaro, his Pontiac GTO (the Judge), and his old International Scout. He almost always had a pick-up truck too, the last one the Dodge Ram he was driving when he had the spinal cord injury that changed his life so much.
Mark went to Allentown (NJ) High School and was mightily annoyed that his parents chose to move back to Mississippi between his junior and senior years, after his dad retired from the USAF. His mother’s brother owned a seafood restaurant there and that helped ease the pain a little bit. His dad had a gas station there and Mark worked there to make money for college. He was the best bagger at Jerry Lee’s and was taught by Jerry Lee himself. He also worked on shrimp boats and had a job on a research vessel that made port in Africa. He brought his sisters’ dashikis from there made by a boy who carried a sewing machine on a strap around his neck.
Mark spent some time at Purdue working on his degree and working with his brother, Rick, for their uncle George Davidson renovating low-income apartments. One of the funniest stories about that time was when he talked about Rick using a garden hose to breathe through when they were fumigating the apartments and Mark’s nephew (Rick’s son) stopping up the end of garden hose intermittently until Rick came running out the apartment red-faced and breathless.
Mark also went to the University of South Alabama but ran out of money to finish his degree. It was after that that he hired on at Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula. After he had been there a while, he joined an inaugural group of nearly 100 people to be trained to be Health Physic Technicians during overhauling and refueling nuclear submarines. The training period was six months but equivalent to an associate degree. It was a math and science curriculum based on Navships 389-0288, and if you failed any of the near daily tests you were out. Mark, having been a stellar student all his life (with the exception of the C he got in handwriting in elementary school) was one of few who made it all the way through. It was there that he met his future wife, Margaret Lynn Thomas, about whom he told a classmate that “I’m going to marry that girl,” thereby failing horribly to fulfill what he wanted to be when his mother asked him what he was going to be when he grew up, his answer was “a bachelor!”
Mark and Margaret were married on August 26, 1978, and left soon after to begin his many years working in the nuclear power industry. Mark had jobs at nearly all the nuclear plants in the U.S. with many different companies. He started as a Rad-Con Monitor and ended up as a Project Manager. Along the way he did planning/scheduling, MOV, Fukushima, and much more, but his main strengths were troubleshooting, problem-solving, and mentoring. No one could dispute that he was a great manager of jobs and people. He remembered birthdays, work anniversaries, and his people’s kids’ names. He gave his all to anything he undertook at work. He always “rode for the brand.”
After having three 2nd trimester miscarriages, he and Margaret decided to become foster parents. Little did they know that they would care for a 17-month-old boy that Mark “took one look at (him) and fell in love,” whom they adopted when he was 4 years old. He is survived by his son, Dakota Ray Davidson, at home.
On February 18, 2016, Mark suffered a spinal cord injury caused by a lymphoma tumor compressing his spinal cord. Although emergency surgery removed the tumor, the damage was done, and he was paralyzed from the waist down. That was only the beginning of years of chemo, radiation, rehab, complications, and a recurrence of lymphoma. God only knows how he kept his spirits up but he managed for a long time. He might be feeling lousy but when the phone rang and it was one of his friends, they were greeted with “Hey, man, how’s it going?”
Mark was a wonderful provider for his family. He always made sure his family had everything they needed and more. But after his injury, Margaret heard him many times tell his friends not to let work consume them, to take the time to do things with your family to make memories because no one knows how long they will be able to do that. He wanted to make sure that no one else had that regret.
Mark was a lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan and he always wanted to see them play in Texas Stadium. Mark and Margaret finally got tickets and planned a trip to fly to Dallas to see the Cowboys play the hated Eagles, the year of the strike! Needless to say, that trip was cancelled. He loved the game of football and spent many happy hours watching the games, dissecting them with his brother Joe, and razzing and being razzed in return by his friends.
Mark was smart and funny, but mostly he was a “helper.” He got no greater joy than by helping others. Whether it was taking care of his younger siblings when they were kids, or helping colleagues at work, or making strangers’ wishes for Christmas come true, or rescuing people on the side of the road with flat tires or engine trouble, or researching solutions for family and friends’ needs or problems- he loved helping those who needed help. Sometimes he didn’t know when to quit, but always, always, always it was because he wanted to make the lives of others better.
Besides his wife and son, he leaves his brothers Brad (Mary) of Salome AZ and Joe (Tamara) of New Orleans, LA, and his sisters Theresa (Dennis) Clay of Arcadia, FL, and Janna (Jeff) Stevenor of Ft. Eustis, VA; nephews and nieces, Stan Davidson, Katie Carbone, Anna Jacobs, and Laura Clay; Richard Davidson III, Kyle Davidson, Becky and Lizzie Davidson, Andy and Kevin Spivey, and Lisa Thomas; his sister-in-law Vera Davidson and brother-in-law John Spivey. He will also be missed by his good friends, Don Ackerman, Joe Nachtwey and Pen Kester. His friend, Suzanne (Baylies) Phillips could always be counted on by Mark to reminisce with him about growing up together and answer his late-night texts. Suzanne was also invaluable in providing respite for Margaret for the first few years after his injury, traveling to PA many times to stay with him.
Mark chose cremation and his remains will be distributed in the places he loved. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date at the Lookout House in Drums, PA, where he spent many memorable times.
In lieu of flowers, please be a helper to anyone who needs it in his honor.