Mark lived on the shores of Lake Chapala in Mexico for several years with his beloved wife, Louise, affectionately known as “Lell.” Oh, what a happy couple they were! Mark was not a mere tourist but a cosmopolitan who studied Spanish and embraced Mexican culture, as he had done previously in Europe and during his Peace Corps service in Nepal. He chronicled his experiences in Nepal in his memoir, Volunteering in Nepal: Loitering in Lucknow.
Mark graduated from Antioch College and later held a fellowship at the Berkeley School of Journalism. He also studied at Trinity College in Dublin, the University of Neuchâtel in Switzerland, and the Goethe Institute in Berlin, establishing a strong academic foundation before settling in Mexico after a career as a businessman.
Reflecting on Mark’s formative teenage years, his lifelong friend Todd Mussberger recalled how Shattuck Military Academy shaped them: “I have never laughed and smiled more than at Shattuck. More than half the time, it was due to Mark’s brilliant handling of our circumstances. He was so damn deft with words – we marveled at it.”
Todd and Mark served together on Shattuck’s drill team, the Crack Squad. This student-run team had status; no faculty member attended practices or advised. Its independence fostered honor and dependability.
Bill Spear was another member of the Crack Squad. He wrote, “The Crack Squad… amounted to something unbelievable, where adolescent boys were able, year after year for over 100 years to create and sustain the best drill team in the world with absolutely no adult supervision, advice, or interference. . . . All of us reflect back on that experience as one of the signal achievements of our lives, important mostly for its lessons about what it takes to achieve something difficult, to be part of something larger than ourselves, and to strive for perfection. None of us… would point to some later achievement that did not have its genesis in the Crack Squad.”
Mark’s love for language and culture grew when he spent time in Russia and learned about Alexander Pushkin. He became a Pushkin scholar and a poet, which led to a lasting friendship with James Falen. Professor Falen’s Pushkin translations received exceptional praise from critics, including from Russian speakers. While in Mexico, Mark and Lell hosted Professor Falen and his wife, Eve. Jim Falen gave a memorable talk on Russian literature to the Ajijic Writers’ Group at Lake Chapala. Then Mark and Lell hosted a standout party at their house to honor the Falens.
Mark’s engagement with Russian literature flourished in Mexico, where he performed moving recitations with a Russian soprano. She sang between his explanations and poetry recitations, beautifully blending their talents at the highest professional level.
Mark’s dedication to Russian poetry brought international recognition. He attended the 200th Pushkin birthday dinner in London with then-Prince Charles, a fellow enthusiast. The Russian Embassy in Washington later invited Mark and Professor Falen for breakfast, where they received awards for their Pushkin scholarship.
Recognition continued in 2016 when Margaret Porter profiled Mark for El Ojo del Lago in “Mark Sconce: Poet and Prince Among Men.” She wrote, “. . . I can see a storm of love gathering in his eyes—for Pushkin, for poetry, for Louise [‘Lell’] for the entirety of life as it dances among the rhymes and rhythms of the heart.”
Mark wrote The Poets’ Niche, a column for El Ojo del Lago, where he was a contributing editor. Mark “Marco” loved Mexico. But when doctors advised Lell to live at sea level due to respiratory illness, Mark said, “First, I want to be a good husband,” so they relocated to Camarillo, Southern California, where Lell preceded him in death. Margaret ended her piece with this poem by Mark:
Embracing you with all my heart
Is what I want to do
And be your faithful counterpart
From here to Khatmandu.
Once again be mine
You sultry valentine.
Mark led a life rich in love, purpose, curiosity, and creating. Of course, Mark would not spend two years in Nepal without learning the language. Mark sometimes signed his emails with namaste, which in both Nepali and Hindi is a respectful greeting or farewell, accompanied by raised palms pressed together with a slight bow. And so to Mark, Namaste, Amigo.
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- Obituary – Mark Sconce - May 30, 2026
- Morality and Science - July 31, 2023
- Editor’s Page – June 2023 - May 31, 2023
