On the morning of September 15th, we received a harrowing phone call from Nat's best friend Hannah. Her husband Mark had been in an accident and was in the hospital in life-threatening condition. Nat stayed on the phone with Hannah throughout the day, getting updates of Mark's condition. Hannah's little sister Iris is also on exchange in Paris, and when Mark's condition worsened we called her over to the apartment right away. We were all stunned to hear around 6pm Paris time that Mark had died.
We immediately started booking flights to Calgary to be with Hannah - Iris left the very next morning, and Corey and I followed the day after. The week that followed was intense. Hannah and Mark had been married for just 5 weeks - we had just participated in and celebrated their wedding almost a month ago. Hannah's other friends Kerry, Letitzia, and Duane flew in to Calgary, and along with Nat and Iris, the girls formed a protective enclave around Hannah during the week, always making sure that one of us was by her side. We all stayed at Mark's parent's house, and the grief and sorrow was palpable. Mark was such a wonderful, giving and kind person - it seemed (and still seems) so unfair that his life was over when it was only just beginning.
Mark died on Monday, September 15th. A prayer session was held for him on Friday, September 19th - the 5-year anniversary that he and Hannah started officially dating. At the session, Hannah read aloud a beautiful card she wrote for her dear husband, best friend and partner in life, Mark. Nat held her hand at the altar while she read it, and there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Neither was there enough room at the church the next day for the funeral mass: Mark's last gathering was a sold-out affair with standing room only. He was laid to rest in a beautiful spot in Queen's Park cemetery, with the sun shining down on him and all of his friends who gathered to say goodbye one last time. We all got together at the Lochli's house afterwards for a party in honour of Mark. With all of his friends gathered together looking at old photos and telling stories about Mark, along with endless coolers of beer, Jaegger-bombs and many, many rounds of tequila shots, we celebrated Mark and his life. Judging by the number of empties the next day, I think we did him proud.
To view Mark's obituary and accompanying guestbook in the Calgary Herald, please click here.
The Story of Mark and Hannah
Mark and Hannah met on the beach in the Dominican Republic in April 2003. Her little sister Iris had dragged her along on one last family vacation there. Hannah and Iris were tanning and watching a group of guys play beach volleyball when Hannah leaned over and told Iris while pointing at a tall, dark, handsome guy, "THAT's the kind of guy I want to marry". Little did she know what role that guy would play in her life. Turns out that the guy was Mark, and he was part of a small group of friends that had already been at the resort for a week with a bigger group; the small group had opted to extend their stay for a second week, which coincided with the week Hannah was there After bonding on the volleyball court and stealing a few midnight kisses, the two of them knew they had found something special.
They stayed in touch over the summer, and Hannah even secretly re-jigged a pre-planned trip through Western Canada with a girlfriend to include a stop in Calgary (where Mark lived) so they could hang out. By September, they knew for sure that the connection they had was real and so on September 19th, 2003, they officially started dating.
By the Fall of 2004, Hannah made the big jump and moved to cow-town to be with Mark. While it was hard to be apart from her friends and family, being close to the man she loved was worth it. Mark taught her the ways of the west, including all about stampede, partying with friends and enjoying every minute of life.
Mark and Hannah were actually so well suited for each other in this respect. While Hannah is the more gregarious of the two, they both shared a zest for life and a level of generosity and caring that couldn't have been better-matched. Hannah always came up with these plans to go places and do things - usually involving squeezing every last possible hour of vacation time and dollars of the budget - and Mark was always more than happy to go along. It's like Hannah would say "Let's jump!" and Mark would say "Yeah!!! How high??".
BBQ with friends
Mark's Birthday (with a Deep 'n' Delicious cake - special!)
Teaching Hannah about the Flames
All dressed up for the EnCana Christmas party.
Supporting the cause at the "No BSTL" party (aka Julian's Birthday)
Gettin' coupley at Stampede!
Together, Hannah and Mark had many adventures, including countless trips to the Caribbean and Mexico with their friends, what seemed like monthly visits to Toronto and even a few jaunts further afield including a tour of Europe and partying in Vegas. Thanks to Hannah and her snap-happy ways, all of these trips were thoroughly documented, so here's just a few snapshots.
TRIP PICTURES
Getting cultural in Austria (Mark actually bought this outfit and took it home for Halloween)
Picnic in their apartment in Paris
At the Seine in Paris
Ice Bar in Copenhagen, Denmark
Checking out vineyards in Kelowna.
Working as a team at their favourite sport in Mexico.
Lovers in Hawaii
While Corey and I were on a trip to Calgary in 2007, at a friend's birthday bash, Mark secretly told us that he was going to surprise Hannah and propose to her in Toronto the following week. Imagine me laughing inside as I consoled a very drunk Hannah in the bathroom that night as she cried, saying that Mark was never going to propose! Together with Kerry and Samson, the five of us hatched a plan to get Mark and Hannah down to the beach volleyball courts in Toronto for the proposal. We carried out the plan almost flawlessly and being the schemers that we were, we actually photographed and videoed the whole thing for posterity!
Right after the proposal
The happy couple!
The schemers!
Still beaming - 5 hours later!
16 months, a zillion wedding update emails, phone calls and spreadsheets, and two rowdy bachelorette parties later, the wedding took place on a very blustery but sunny day at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. Those of us who were there remember that Mark and Hannah never looked happier - Mark had a permanent little-kid giddy smile on his face that day. The entire day went without a hitch (well almost - the reverend was an hour late and showed up James Bond-style via speedboat!). The ceremony was beautiful, the dinner was so tasty that everyone cleaned their plates, the speeches were great and you could really feel that the entire room was filled with love. We all partied long into the night until the yacht club kicked us all out at 2:30am. It went down as one of best weddings in history.
"Oh yeah, I'm getting married today!"
Mark reviewing his vows yet again (even though Hannah kept telling him they would be there on paper to read)
Getting excited!
Walking his soon-to-be mother-in-law down the aisle.
Mark awaiting his bride, trying to hold back the tears of joy
Not doing so well!
The handoff from dad (Sorin) to Mark.
The ceremony. Check out those smiles.
Awwww
And again! Awwwww
"And with this ring, I thee wed"
Sealed with a kiss.
Signing and making it official!
The new Mr. and Mrs. Lochli
Team Bridal
Posing for the people
Mark with the girls. As giddy as a kid in a candy store!
The beautiful couple
"We did it!!"
First Dance
Proving they were up for any challenge
The end of the night. No tie, no jacket, shirt open, drink in one hand, wife in the other: signs of a good time.
Our Goodbye to Mark
Mark was the kind of person that we all aspire to be. He was generous, caring, smart, athletic, handsome and easy-going. As a husband and partner to Hannah, he was the best. The love she told me about was the stuff of fairytales - confident, everlasting and reaffirmed every day. The day of their marriage - the day they professed that everlasting love to each other and all of their friends and family - was without a doubt, the happiest day of both of their lives.
It's so unfair that such a wonderful person was taken from this world at such a young age and at a point where his life was just beginning. We'll both miss Mark terribly and we'll always remember his permanent smile, nodding head and easy-going way of always saying "yeah, let's do that!".
Mark, you are forever in our hearts.
1 comment:
Beautiful...memorable...unforgettable...unbelievable...heartbreaking...Thank you Nat & Corey!!
Hannah's parents
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