July 10, 1951 – Dec. 12, 2018
Mark George Weidhaas was born in Northampton, MA on July 10, 1951 to George B. Weidhaas and Eleanor Lucy Marciniak Weidhaas. Mark attended Williston Academy in Easthampton, MA. Throughout high school, Mark showcased his musical talent, inherited from his dad, in a band that performed throughout the area. Mark passed on that musical gift to his grandchildren.
After high school, Mark went on to The University of Massachusetts Amherst and architecture schools at Montana State University, The University of Idaho and Boston Architectural Center. He completed his apprenticeship in Portsmouth, NH. His education led him to a career in insurance, real estate, home design and building. In his 48 years in business, Mark designed and built hundreds of homes in Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island and Montana. With a smile, he would say, “I made a lot of people happy.”
Mark’s love of woodworking began as a young boy working with his dad in his shop. Throughout his life he continued to hone his woodworking skills becoming a true artisan. His dad also instilled in Mark a love of the outdoors. Mark was an avid and accomplished sportsman. He enjoyed hunting and fishing and shared his interest with others. A proficient freshwater fly fisherman since childhood, Mark snow-birded to Florida for eight years in order to expand his love of fishing to saltwater. In 2011 Mark moved from Bozeman, MT to Southwest Florida to further pursue his fishing passion.
Mark’s tenets of life were, “Try to treat others as you would like to be treated”, “If you do something, do it right” and “Persevere, never give up”. Diagnosed with cancer in 2015, Mark returned to Montana to be closer to family.
He is survived by his daughter, Sara (Tim) Gram; grandchildren, Will and Georgia Gram of Bozeman, MT; his son, Karl (Jennifer) Weidhaas; granddaughter, Elizabeth Weidhaas of Salt Lake City, UT; his brother, Allen (Caroline) Weidhaas, nephew, Clinton Weidhaas, of Stuart VA; childhood friend, Gail Fisher of Canaan, VT, who supported Mark throughout the final months of his journey; and a wealth of extended family and friends in New England, Florida and Montana. He will be missed by all those privileged to know him.
No services are planned at this time. Arrangements are in the care of Dokken-Nelson Funeral Service.