Obituary of Mark Charles Geiger

Mark Charles Geiger (70) passed away on Saturday, February 4, 2023. After battling cancer for several years, he spent his final days at home surrounded by his children, siblings, old friends, and his beloved wife Jennifer Geiger. 

Mark often joked that he had nine lives and requested that his obituary include the eight times that he cheated death. As he relayed it:

(1) When Mark was a child, he and some friends were dared to walk across a train trestle over a deep ravine. Never one to back down, he took the bait and began the dangerous balancing act. When he was halfway across, a train came thundering down the track. Mark dangled over the edge, holding on for dear life as the trestle shook. (2) When Mark was enrolled at Marietta College, he was driving home from Ohio to New Jersey in a blizzard one night when he slid off the road. He had just exited the car when an explosives truck smashed into the vehicle. (3&4) On two separate occasions during the time when Mark managed the family farm in Connecticut, he was cutting large trees with a chainsaw when they nearly killed him. Legend has it that one of the trees rolled after him like the boulder in Indiana Jones. (5) In his late-30s, while living with his family in Woolwich, Maine, he was diagnosed with leukemia. He fought the illness valiantly and made a complete recovery with help from a bone marrow donation from his son Colin. (6) Several years later, while working as a painter, Mark was high up in a hydraulic lift. One of his employees hit the lift with his truck and Mark nearly toppled over the side. He subsequently threatened murder. (7&8) Not to be denied the experience of falling, he did so twice after teetering on the highest precipices painting houses.  Both times he miraculously walked away mostly unscathed.

“Magic Markie” lived life to its fullest, immersing himself in everything he did and making connections with everybody he encountered. He founded Preservation House Painters and took pride in maintaining historic buildings up and down the New England coast for over 40 years. When he wasn’t working, he was forever tinkering, woodworking, inventing, and writing poetry in his workshop. His friends and family were often the beneficiaries of his handmade gifts and humorous creations.

He was a wonderful cook and friend and welcomed many people to his table and front porch for conversation and food. He was a loving and supportive father, husband, brother, grandfather, and friend. He was an active member of the democratic party and a staunch environmentalist.

Mark loved children and retained a playful spirit throughout his entire life. He loved music and playing his guitar. And he loved his family, who loves him back and misses him dearly. 

Mark was born to Jean Geiger and Bob Geiger in Summit, NJ, on June 25, 1952.  He is survived by his wife Jennifer Geiger, his children Colin, Trevor, and Molly, his five siblings, Merritt, David, Pam, Stephen, and Lauren, his six grandchildren, and thirteen nieces and nephews.

A memorial gathering will be held at a date to be determined in Spring 2023.