Mark A. Zimmer's Obituary
Mark Alfred Zimmer, 89, beloved husband, father, and grandfather, died peacefully with his family at his side, on February 20, 2018, from complications related to his treatment for cancer. A 52-year resident of Miami, he was born in Houston, Texas on May 28, 1928, the oldest of four children born to Mr. and Mrs. Carl Matthias Zimmer. He married Mary Margaret Jacobi and together they raised four children.
After serving as an Aerographer’s mate in the United States Coast Guard, he completed his education in meteorological sciences at St. Louis University and spent his career with the National Weather Service (NWS) from which he retired in 1991. Early in his career he was posted to assignments in the snowy Midwest. Eager to get back to the warm beach climate he loved, he accepted an assignment to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where he was stationed for seven years. From there, he transferred to the National Hurricane Center in Miami (division of the NWS), where he spent the remainder of his career. He loved hurricane forecasting and after retirement, he continued to provide meteorological consulting to private companies.
For over 30 years, he championed community awareness of Mental Illness. He advocated for Fellowship House, a psychosocial rehabilitation center for individuals who experience severe and persistent psychiatric disabilities, and was a member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Miami-Dade County, where he led support groups, and held elected offices. NAMI, the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization, is dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.
Prior to becoming a parishioner at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, he was an active member of St. Timothy Catholic Church where he served as lector and lay eucharistic minister. During St. Timothy’s yearly carnival, he could always be found alongside his wife, manning the pizza booth.
Mark treasured family time and also loved to dance and socialize with friends. He was a member of the Elks, Moose, American Legion, ‘Dancers’, Fleet, USA Dance, the St. John Neumann Men’s Club and NARFE.
He is alive in the hearts and memories of his family and friends and is survived by his wife and his four children, Carol Smith (Timothy), Stephen, Janet Angel (James), and Bryan, and his grandchildren, Tracey and Wyatt.
The viewing will be held on March 2, 2018 from 4pm to 8pm at the Van Orsdel Funeral Chapel, 11220 North Kendall Drive, Miami, Florida 33176. The funeral mass will be held on Saturday, March 3, 2018 at 12 noon at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, 12125 S.W. 107th Avenue, Miami, Florida 33176, with the burial immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to NAMI Miami-Dade County (namimiami.org).
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