James Marcus "Mark" Fair

James Marcus “Mark” “JMark” Fair, age 82, transitioned on Friday, February 26, 2021, at his home in Mesquite, Nevada.  He was born December 3, 1938, in Riverby, Texas to James Carroll and Rachel Lee Newsome Fair.  Mark grew up in Klamath Falls, Oregon. With the certainty that his path led to the United States Navy, he creatively managed to join at age 17 with his best friend Jim. He saw the world and was particularly fond of Yokosuka, Japan, where he learned much about the culture.
Mark met his “Babe” Julie Porter in April 1960 in their College Algebra class at Shasta Junior College. His dashing good looks and confidence made for a “love at first sight” and he charmed her into marriage on October 14, 1961 in Redding, CA. They spent their first few years of marriage in Alaska braving bears and arctic weather with their 3-legged German Shepherd while working for the National Weather Service.
Mark proudly served in the US Navy and retired after 30 years at the rank of Lieutenant Commander.  His last commanding post was Coronado Island, CA. Mark loved his work and chased his career dreams and promotions around the world. The inspiring places he lived include McGrath, Alaska, Corvallis, Oregon, Kwajalein Atoll, and Mink Creek, Idaho. He was an inspiring senior leader in both the military and corporate worlds.
He was the smartest person most people had ever met and dazzled with his wealth of knowledge on varied topics, regularly completing nearly impossible crossword puzzles and solving intellectual challenges with out-of-the-box solutions.
His pursuit of knowledge led him to earn a Master’s Degree in Weather Sciences and a Master’s of Business Administration. A story-teller at heart, he entertained people with tales of far-flung adventures, experiences many would only dream of, and events one can only see if you spend your life exploring the globe.
Together with Julie, Mark traveled the world on vacations from meager to lavish and everything in between. Among his favorite places to visit were Hawaii, Australia, and Bali. Throughout his life, he visited 6 out of the 7 continents and carried with him a love for local cuisine – he would happily try anything! Later in life, he discovered a passion for cooking and could recreate the amazing gourmet dishes he tasted.  He cultivated this passion and created beautiful meals nourishing family and friends with his special servings of love.
Mark was a true sailor at heart and enjoyed owning watercraft and dragging his family along with him on waterborne adventures. He enjoyed snorkeling, basking in the sun, and playing in any body of water that presented itself.
After retirement, Mark performed top-secret meteorological consulting for defense missions for nearly two decades. In his downtime, he could be found hiking and camping in the deserts of Nevada in the winter, and the mountains of Idaho in the summer. His unparalleled sense of humor provided countless hours of great fun and raucous laughter while playing pinochle with family and poker with the other Veterans of Mesquite, NV.
Survivors include his beloved wife, Julie; son, Jamie (Holly) of Sandy, UT; two grandchildren, Cody (Carissa) of Sandy, UT, and Amanda of West Valley City, UT; and two great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by son Joshua and has undoubtedly had a joyous reunion around a heavenly campfire.
Mark will be inurned with military honors later this year in Arlington National Cemetery. A virtual Celebration of Life will be held on Zoom on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021 at 5:30 PM Pacific Standard Time where friends and family are welcome to gather to share stories and reminisce about how their lives have been touched by this amazing man.
At the appointed time, please click to join the Zoom Room here: https://tinyurl.com/nbmv4fp6.
Friends and family are also invited to sign the online guest book at www.virginvalleymortuary.com.
In lieu of flowers, anyone desiring may make a donation in his name to the American Cancer Society: https://www.cancer.org/involved/donate.html.