Mark Brubaker Martin

Mark Brubaker Martin, age 80, of Sarasota, Florida, died Friday, March 21, 2025 at Sunnyside Village, following a period of declining health. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Jean Graybill Martin. Mark was born on March 25, 1944 in Lancaster County, PA, to William K. and Sarah E. Brubaker Martin. He attended Elizabethtown Area High School, class of 1962. After high school, Mark spent 3 years in Congo with Mennonite Central Committee’s PAX program, as an alternative to military service. This experience led him to a long career in construction and missions. Mark spent his early career working for Ammon Schrock construction in Sarasota, Florida as construction supervisor and vice-president. In 1982, Mark joined Eastern Mennonite Missions and served 13 years at Rosslyn Academy in Nairobi, Kenya, where he oversaw school maintenance and new building projects. While in Kenya, he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from United States International University. Upon return to Sarasota, he earned his residential contractor certification and real estate licence and continued as a construction supervisor until his retirement. Mark was a member of First Presbyterian Church and Covenant Mennonite Fellowship in Sarasota. Mark was an avid follower of international and national news, enjoyed listening to music, loved classic cars, and was always ready to fix anything. He loved to travel, to discover new places, and to learn about the past. In later years when he couldn’t travel, he loved to retell many stories of his life. In addition to his wife Jean, Mark is survived by two daughters, Krista (Craig) Martin of Wooster, OH, and Andrea (Brad Siemens) Martin of Portland, OR; four grandchildren, Bryan and Annika Martin of Wooster, OH, and Oliver and Ada Martin Siemens of Portland, OR; one brother, Fred (Iris) Martin of Elizabethtown, PA; and three sisters in law, Elva Martin of Millersville, PA and Ava Lee Martin of Marietta, PA, and Patricia Martin Gruber of Mount Joy, PA. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his siblings Richard, Sara Ann Keener, George, Orpha, John, and Joel. A celebration of life service will be held at 2:00 PM on April 3, 2025 at Sunnyside Chapel, 5201 Bahia Vista St, Sarasota. Chaplain Jarvis Hochstedler (Sunnyside) and Pastor Tim Boggess (First Presbyterian Church) will officiate the service. Live stream link: https://www.christianworldmedia.com/livechannel/sunnysidechapel. Memorial contributions may be made in Mark’s honor to Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) https://mds.org/, Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) https://mcc.org, or Covenant Mennonite Fellowship https://covenantmennonite.com/.

Mark Brubaker Martin

March 25, 1944 - March 21, 2025