Obituary
Mark Michael Starodub
Feb 28, 1957 – Feb 27, 2021
It is with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the sudden passing of Mark. We lost him on Feb. 27, the day before his 64th birthday.
He was predeceased by his father Peter, father and mother-in-law Charles and Margaret Fox, niece Stacey Fox, sister-in-law Linda Fox and brother-in-law Louie Smelsky. Greeting him from across the rainbow bridge will be his beloved heavenly hounds Taffy, Kelsey, Muffy and Murphy.
Left to mourn his tragic loss is his loving wife Charlene who had 44 years of cherished memories with him. Also mourning his loss are his mother Pauline (Selkirk), his sisters Maryanne Peters (Winnipeg) and Joanne Starodub (Toronto) and brothers Peter, Jacquie, Liz, Caitlin (Los Angeles) and Greg, Lorraine, Georgia (Washington), in-laws Harold Fox (Pat), Ron Fox, Lynne Hallam (Doug), Sandra Cronin (Gary), nephews Chris Hallam (Angela, Kayla, Meghan), Jay Hallam (Michelle) and Scott Fox (Kim, Jonas). Also missing Mark is his beloved dog Mindy of 13 years. She meant the world to Mark. He loved her so much and spoiled her at every chance. Mindy and Mark were often seen driving around town with Mindy getting dibs on the front seat a lot of the time. Mindy will also miss the walks in the neighbourhood with him and rides on the golf cart in the evenings when Mark practiced. A huge paw print has been left on his soul.
Mark worked at Gerdau in the spec lab and retired in 2017. He always opted to work the night shift so he could have his days to golf. He also spent some time teaching, which included terms in Lockport, Teulon and Winnipeg. Upon retirement he had more time to participate in his favourite past time – golf. He was an avid golfer, golfing almost daily. He was a member of the Selkirk Golf Course since he was a junior and also had memberships at Pine Ridge and Pinawa Golf Courses for a few years. Since retirement, he and Charlene were fortunate to be able to spend the last few winters in Florida with their friends Jennifer and Bill. Mark enjoyed golfing at Okeeheelee and Sandhill Crane golf courses where he regularly fed the sandhill cranes by hand. These were his “happy places” where he made many American, Finnish and Canadian snowbird friends. Charlene and Mark gained the accolade of “The Conscientious Canadians” while on the range. He so enjoyed joking around with the golf staff, the course volunteers and our Florida golf friends.
Mark was also a competitive golfer and was often seen practicing. Through the years, he golfed in many Canadian and Manitoba Amateur, Mid-Amateur and Club Champ events. He was able to snag some top honours. An accomplishment he was especially proud of was his team winning the 2005 Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship held in Charlottetown, PEI. Another feat he was so proud of was when he and Charlene became the first married couple to capture the Selkirk Club Championship titles in the same year, both in 1996 and 2001. Mark also won the Selkirk Senior Club Championship a number of times as well as a Pinawa Mens Club Championship. Mark held bragging rights to 5 Hole-in-Ones with one of them being on the infamous bevelled green at the 9th hole at Pineridge. We would like to thank Ian Brooks for honouring Mark by lowering the flag at the Selkirk Golf Course.
Mark enjoyed travelling, going to Bahamas, Mexico, Hawaii, many American cities and cruising to Alaska and the Caribbean. Florida was definitely his favorite destination. Mark was a whiz at math, had a very quick wit, could be very tech savvy and he googled his way to do many repairs and jobs. Charlene would often say “How did you know how to do that?”
He was also a romantic at heart. He surprised Charlene with a trip to New Orleans for their 25 years together anniversary and another surprise trip to Boston for her birthday. The limousine pick-up from school was a nice touch and the other teachers’ husbands were upset at how he really raised the bar for romantic gestures.
As per Mark’s wishes, there will be no formal service. He simply didn’t like seeing people suffer and be so sad. His wishes were to be cremated and his ashes spread on the hill behind the 18th green, where their picture was taken after winning club champs as a couple.
To say Mark was an animal lover is an understatement. He had such compassion for all animals but had a special bond with dogs. He always had treats in his pockets to give to the neighborhood dogs on his walks or where ever he met one. Anyone so wishing may make a donation in Mark’s memory to CancerCare or an animal shelter of your choice.
So many golf games with so many golf buddies – Len, Gloria, Billy, Donnie, Keith, Mike G, Mike C, Robbie, Dougie, Barry and many, many others. Pretty sure Mark probably held the record each summer for number of games played. And we will miss hearing him say his signature trademark when putting, as you often heard him say “Hit it!” This meant, be bold, commit, get the ball to the hole, reach that goal. So, please everyone, remember through your life, take Mark’s advice and “Hit It!”
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Mark Michael Starodub, please visit our floral store.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Mark Michael Starodub February 27 2021..
Death notice for the town of: Selkirk, Province: Manitoba