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<p><em>Mark William Healy </em>entered this world at Fort Campbell, KY on March 9, 1961. His exit came at Colorado University Hospital in Aurora, CO on October 27, 2024. His last year was truly a struggle, identifying and combatting the cancers relentlessly attacking his body. During his last month he received a stem cell transplant. The new cells were starting to work when an infection compromised his weakened immune system. Mark fought the good fight. </p>
<p>With his parents, brother and sister he literally circled the globe by age 10. By age 14 he had taken his initial (and only) swim in the Hudson River. This may have been the origin of one of his pithier observations of life: “If you have a pack of boys, they will invariably make the worst possible decision.” At age 18, he entered the Corps of Cadets, graduating in 1983 (“Proud to Be ’83”). Commissioned in the Corps of Engineers, his initial assignment was with the 82d Airborne Division’s 307th Engineer Battalion. There he began amassing the jumps that would lead to his Master Parachutist Badge. The pride in that accomplishment was tattooed across his chest. “If my battalion executive officer [who rose to become the 51st Chief of Engineers could do it, I could too,” he said. After leaving the Army in 1988, Mark pursued opportunities mostly, not entirely, related to the aerospace industry. The odd job out was a start-up he entered with classmates. When that ended, he returned to the aerospace profession. </p>
<p>Mark joined Ball Aerospace in 2003 after earlier being sent there by Lockheed Martin to help correct a systemic problem. Ball Aerospace was subsequently purchased by BAE Systems. As senior vice-president, he led two of Ball and BAE’s largest and most complex missions. In the words of Dave Kaufman, his boss and mentor at BAE, “He was a master of taking calculated risks and knowing what our customers needed, often before they knew themselves.” His job was so important to him that he continued active participation during his entire final year, sometimes while in the hospital, sometimes at home and most often at the office. </p>
<p>Duty, Honor, Country: Mark embodied and lived those ideals; believed deeply in them. A sense of duty and living an honorable life were central to his being. He loved his profession; he knew it safeguarded and benefited the country’s security. </p>
<p>Mark embraced life in Colorado, the great outdoors and the opportunities afforded by nature: skiing, wind surfing, hiking, climbing and water paddle sports of every mode imaginable. His garage was full of canoes and kayaks. He loved outings with them, especially with his family’s participation, canoeing the boundary waters of Minnesota and the Missouri River in Montana. He found joy in making things, such as wooden canoes for his sons and surfboards for open water adventures, made with their assistance. He got into cooking and loved that too, whether on the gas range at home or over an open campfire (and if there were extra spice involved, that was even better). He loved big dogs and shared his life with a Newfoundland, Buck, and two Great Danes, Dakota and Gracie, at different stages in his life. </p>
<p>Mark found intense pride and satisfaction in his life: “Proud to Be ’83” and pride in his alma mater. He was proud of his military service and his contributions to Ball and BAE. He was especially proud of his sons, Cam and Liam, and their educational and professional accomplishments. Eternal happiness came in his marriage to Christine, the love of his life; with the dream house they built in Berthoud, CO and the expectation of continued happiness, only to be confronted with unrelenting cancers. Mark is survived by his wife, Christine; his sons Cam and Liam (and Nina); his brother Pat (and Jill); his sister Cathy; his parents, Dick (Class of ’60) and Marie; and numerous nieces and nephews. </p>
<p><em>— His Family</em></p>
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