— April 10, 2023
Mark Mansell, our valued friend and colleague and long-time employee of the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, passed away on April 4, 2023. He was 61. Mark, whose work at the Bureau focused on creating maps and analyzing spatial data, joined our organization as a full-time employee in 1996. He had previously worked for the Bureau as a student while pursuing a Bachelor of General Studies, which he completed in 1995. He continued his education, earning a Bachelor of Basic Sciences in 2001.
On the outside, Mark could come across as gruff, or even curmudgeonly. But all of us who knew him can attest to his fundamental kindness and his “get it done” attitude on work projects. As former Bureau director Peter Scholle wrote, “I can't count the number of times he dropped everything he was doing to help me with a project, even long after I retired.” His dogged determination to get things done right is well summed up in this quote by Thomas Edison from his email signature: “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
Although Mark’s job was largely in the office, he loved being outdoors, and was enthusiastic about helping out colleagues on field projects and New Mexico Geological Society field conferences, of which he attended many. We will all miss Mark on these field trips, and in so many other ways.
A celebration of Mark's life took place on Saturday, April 15th at the Magdalena Charles Ilfield Co. Warehouse on Main St. in Magdalena, NM.
— Nelia Dunbar
