Mark Warren Taylor

Mark Warren Taylor, age 67, of Greensboro, passed away Sunday, August 1 , 2021 at home surrounded by his wife and children. He was born on September 25, 1953 in Gouverneur, NY. He is the son of Norton Warren Taylor and of the late Joan Brickey Taylor. Mark graduated high school in 1971 from Gouverneur Senior High in Gouverneur, NY. He studied and graduated from SUNY Jefferson in 1974 and State University of New York at Plattsburgh in 1976. He moved to Greensboro shortly after and met and married the love of his life, Rita, in 1980.

Mark had a passion for creativity and owned his own sign and neon company, Sign Management, for nearly thirty years. After retirement, he took his sign business knowledge and skill and began a sailboat logo company. He enjoyed this because it mixed his passion for the business; plus, the love of sailing. You would find Mark volunteering in his children’s schools and teaching science lessons about his love for neon and electricity. He also came to many career days at his daughter’s school when she was teaching. He was a natural teacher and loved helping children. For several years, Mark helped fifth graders learn about sailing in the Virginia area. He would charter a boat with students; showing and teaching them how to sail. For some of the kids, it was their first time on the water and on a boat.

Mark is preceded in death by his mother, Joan Brickey Taylor.

He is survived by his father, Norton Warren Taylor of Gouverneur, NY, who just celebrated his 99th birthday. Mark is survived by his wife Marguerite “Rita” Taylor, his son, Christopher Warren Taylor and wife Lauren of Cary, NC; daughter, Ashley Taylor Moritz and husband Adrian of Charlotte, NC; his sisters, Patricia Hunt and husband Mark of Ohio, Lisa Joseph and husband Phil of Vermont; grandchildren, Anna Henderson Taylor, David Warren Taylor, Lillian Taylor Moritz and a new baby grandson, planned to be born in January 2022.

This past year, Mark and Rita celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary by renewing their wedding vows. They were able to write and read their own vows in front of friends and family. It was a beautiful day of celebrating love and the life they had built.

Mark had a passion for skiing, a love for sailing and enjoyed spending time with friends and family. He wore many hats, but the one that made him the proudest, was being a “Gramps,” to his three grandchildren. Gramps’ house was always full of laughter and lots of baking treats for the grandchildren. Mark never met a stranger and loved meeting people. He had this ability to make you feel like you were the most important person in the room when talking with him.

You could always see Mark enjoying the little things in life and spending time with his beloved wife, Rita. They spent almost every night sitting on their front porch, talking and enjoying one another. This was their spot; and it brought both of them so much joy. They also enjoyed spending many weekends at their condo at Smith Mountain Lake. Mark began the love of the lake from his early childhood. He learned how to sail at a very young age and developed this passion from his beloved mother. His passion led to Mark owning many sailboats throughout his life. He loved sleeping under the stars, exploring the lake and spending time with his lake family and Rita. Mark was a long-standing member of the VISA Yacht Club at Smith Mountain Lake. This is where he met his lifelong lake friends that became family.

Mark will be remembered for his amazing heart, for the way he saw life, for the way he lived in each moment; taking nothing for granted. But most importantly how he loved. He found humor is almost everything and knowing him, was loving him. He fought a courageous battle with illness and was given precious time to spend his last year, months and weeks knowing how many people loved him. During his illness, his children surprised him with a video of personal messages, songs and pictures sent in from family and friends. The video ended up being over two and a half hours long. It was a true testament of how much everyone adored Mark. He sat and enjoyed the video, laughing and crying and being able to witness the love people had for him. Mark will be greatly missed by so many, but his family is so thankful that he had a personal relationship with the Lord and feels at peace knowing he is in the arms of Jesus.

A Celebration of Life Service for Mark will be held on Saturday, September 25th at the Hanes-Lineberry Funeral Home Sedgefield Chapel. The family will receive friends at the funeral home beginning at 10:00 am. The Celebration of Life service will take place at 11:00 am.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made in Mark’s memory to the following foundations that were very close to his heart:

Ryan’s Wish Foundation was set up by a childhood friend of Mark’s, who lost his young son to cancer. This foundation provides financial support that assists individuals of all ages with expenses incurred during treatment of hospitalization for cancer or other serious illnesses.

Donations in Mark’s memory can be made to:

Ryan’s Wish Foundation

P.O. Box 326

181 East Main St.

Gouverneur, NY 13642

Red Dog Farm is a local rescue for animals that helps with finding animals forever homes by using foster families and helping with expenses. Mark had a love for rescuing animals and it made him so happy adopting and supporting local rescues.

Donations in Mark’s memory can be made to:

Red Dog Farm Animal Rescue Network

8653 NC Highway 65

Stokesdale, NC 27357

https://reddogfarm.com/