Mark Alan Carlson

Mark Carlson of Fargo, ND passed away on Nov. 18 at Sanford Medical Center in the ICU surrounded by his family after a short battle with liver and kidney failure. He was 52. A beloved husband, father, brother, son, and friend, Mark had a natural ability to strike up a conversation with anyone he encountered and positively impact them with his fun sense of humor.

Mark was born on April 21, 1971, in Lisbon, ND to Wallace and Bernice Carlson. Since Mark was between 13 and 18 years younger than his 4 older siblings, it was quite the occasion with his birth being announced over the high school intercom. Mark grew up on the family farm just outside of Lisbon where he worked alongside his father and brother Wally until graduating from Lisbon High School in 1989. He attended Moorhead State University where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and met his wife, Jennifer. They were married on August 18, 1993 in Aberdeen, SD and made their home in Fargo, ND for the last 30 years.

After college, Mark started working for Nodak Mutual Insurance in 1993 for five years. He then worked for Warner and Company as an underwriter where he earned his Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation sending Mark and Jen to San Antonio, TX for the National Convention in October of 1999. He returned to Nodak again in the Spring of 2001, starting out as a Commercial Underwriter and continued to pursue additional CPCU designations including AU, ARM, API, and AIS and recently served as the Vice President of the local chapter. Over the last 20 years he’s had different job titles including a Business Analyst, Business Development Specialist, and finally a Project Coordinator II. Mark worked closely with a special team, and he really valued and enjoyed working with all of them. He was very proud to work for Nodak Insurance.

Mark absolutely adored his 3 sons and was involved in all of their activities, rarely missing any event or competition. He was very active in Boy Scouts from the time all three were in Cub Scouts at Centennial Elementary School. Mark served as treasurer and Cub Master for several years in Troop 225. He was also active in the same Boy Scout Troop and was extremely proud of all of their accomplishments, especially watching Andrew fulfill the requirements of becoming an Eagle Scout. He encouraged Matt as Editor of the Davies Yearbook, and purchased him a DSLR camera, so he could take quality photographs. He also supported Joe in his sports including football and tennis, and Matt and Andrew when they played soccer. And last, but by far not least, Mark absolutely loved supporting the Davies Swim and Dive Team and watching both Andrew and Joe swim competitively while taking great pride in all the success they achieved along with the team over the past 10 years. He was involved in many duties including working in the tower navigating the complicated technical side of the sport to help run the meets. Mark cherished every moment spent with this team, the coaches, and families and we are so thankful that we will always be considered a part of the Davies Swim and Dive family.

Everyone who knew Mark understood that he was an insufferable Minnesota Vikings Fan since he was a child, and even though he experienced so much disappointment, he never gave up on his favorite team. He told a nurse at the hospital that he wanted to live long enough to see the Vikings in the Super Bowl, and we all joked that none of us will live that long. Our wish was to watch one last Vikings game together on Sunday, November 19, and the doctors and nurses started gathering snacks and everything to make it a special time for us, but Mark was just too sick and passed away the day before. We will always remember Mark and his loyalty to this team as we watch future Vikings games.

Mark is survived by his wife Jennifer, and sons, Matt, Andrew, and Joe; siblings, Wally (Kris) Carlson of Fargo, Linda (Barry), Kylstad of Fort Ransom, ND, Diane (Jack) Caufield of Kearney, NE and Terry (Joanne) Carlson of Carrington, ND; 7 nephews, 5 nieces and their families, and so many friends he loved spending time with and would do anything for. He was preceded in death by his parents, Wallace and Bernice Carlson.

I promised Mark I would share his story, so we could help other people suffering in silence from addiction and feeling too ashamed to seek help because of the stigma associated with it that should not exist. Addiction and mental health disorders are diseases just like diabetes, multiple sclerosis, or heart disease, and failure to treat them can lead to debilitating health conditions or death. We need to make research for treatments a priority because addiction can happen to anyone, and we are losing far too many good people like Mark to this insidious disease. If you are concerned about yours or someone else’s drinking, please don’t stay silent like we did because secrets can lead to a devastating loss. It gives us so much peace that Mark surrendered his life to Jesus while he was in the hospital, so he was at peace knowing where he was going, and we are certain we will see him again.

Mark’s Celebration of Life Ceremony will be held at Hope Lutheran Church, South Campus at 11:00 AM with visitation starting at 10:00 AM. This service will be livestreamed on the Boulger Funeral Home website. Burial of Mark’s ashes will take place at a later date.