Mark Fontana – Touched many lives

Mark Fontana, 56, died Tuesday, September 26, 2006 at his home
in Oxnard. Mark was born in Fontana, Calif., December 3, 1949, but
lived in Ontario, CA until the age of 10, at which time he entered
into a six-month adventure in Mexico with his father, Ralph, who
was there studying on a Ford Foundation Fellowship. The Ontario
years were real Ozzie and Harriet times, and Mark kept in contact
with friends from those years to his last days. His family then
moved to Inglewood, California, when his father entered USC Dental
School.
Upon graduation, the Fontanas moved to the Guerneville. Mark
attended El Molino High School in nearby Forestville, where the
family had moved in 1965. He was an athlete, scholar and musician,
graduating as the class salutatorian in 1968.
Mark loved the Russian River area, but left for good in 1974. He
is fondly remembered by many people who shared this portion of his
life. As a former UCSB student, he returned to Santa Barbara and
began working at UCSB in food services. He left UCSB for several
years after obtaining a degree in Restaurant Management from nearby
Santa Barbara Community College, pursuing his career in Anaheim.
Returning to Santa Barbara in 1984, he resumed his career at UCSB,
where he stayed until forced by illness to leave in 2004. He held
numerous positions in the UC Dining Services, and ended his career
as senior manager, overseeing the operations of the Coral Tree
Cafe.
Mark made numerous friends and touched the lives of many young
students who made up his staff. He felt that these were the most
enjoyable of his working years, and was a friend to countless
members of his regular customers. Mark was a skillful, creative
chef, much loved food service manager and accomplished musician.
Over the years he composed, sang and recorded on CD many of his
original songs. Upon learning of his illness, there was a great
outpouring of love and concern, and when his accumulated time-off
benefits ended, his fellow staff members donated nearly a year’s
worth of their own vacation hours. He cried whenever recounting
this story to others. UCSB remained a part of him, and he felt so
fortunate to have spent 24 years of his life on campus.
The remarkable length of time he lived after being diagnosed as
terminally ill was perhaps the fullest and most meaningful of his
entire life. He became a great student of metaphysics, as he moved
more and more into the realm of spirit, becoming ever more joyful
and serene. As inner peace became more and more his home, his love
for others, and especially for his beloved wife Colleen, became
deeper. He left this world filled with gratitude and was a shining
example to so many who were fortunate enough to know him, of what,
in the face of great calamity, one can become.
He had the incredible good fortune of discovering and being
fully accepted by his 36-year-old daughter, Lisa Bauman and
beautiful one-year-old grandson, Reed. In many ways this event was
the miracle that completed his life. He was preceded in death by
his mother Jacquie, and leaves behind countless friends, cousins,
nieces, nephews, aunts and uncles, his sister Judy, his father
Ralph, his daughter Lisa Bauman and her husband Chris Steffens,
grandson Reed Steffens, dear four legged children Peanut and Cisco,
and the one great love of his life, his darling wife Colleen. A
memorial service was held Saturday, October 14, 2006 in Loma Vista
Rd., Ventura, with friend, Jim Matthews officiating. Donations in
Mark’s name may be made to The Dream Foundation, 1528 Chapala St.,
Suite 304, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; 805-564-2131.