Mark "CookNFish" Bellotte Memorial Service - Aug 30

[RockinNReelin]

I received this email from Mark's brother regarding his memorial service so I wanted to pass it on to anyone who's interested in attending.

I would like to thank everyone for their condolences, prayers and patience with us during this time. The loss of our brother and subsequent complications have been very difficult for our family. We have finally sorted everything out and can now announce that we have finalized plans for Mark's funeral. Services will be held next at 4:00pm Thursday Aug. 30 at The Island Chapel in Tierra Verde, the address is below. Services are open to anyone who would like to attend. If you are sending flowers, at the request of the facility please have them delivered before 2pm. Donations can be made to the "CookNFish Memorial Fund" at any Wells Fargo branch.

The Island Chapel
1271 Pinellas Bayway South
Tierra Verde, FL 33715
Tel: 727-866-7362

[GatorTroutBoy]

Whoops, thanks for posting this Sharon. I just posted the info as well and did not see your post before I did. See you next week folks.

[John]

I will see you there, it will be an honor to pay my respects.

[Todd]

Very touching service today. Mark Belotte left a tremendous mark (no pun intended) in this world. I am glad I knew him and could call him a friend. You will be missed my friend.

[pag_yaker]

Very much so. Still processing it all. I learned a lot today about the kid ... better late than never, I guess.

Guitar: Never knew he played! I'm wagering he only ever played just for fun, hence no wannabe/has_been swagger. I have extra guitars at home ... why didn't we ever stretch a couple of them out?

Work: I too perform a similar customer_service/tech_support "Hello, how can I help you undo the dumb sh*t you just did without making you feel like you just did some dumb sh*t?" role. People don't call because they're having a super day. So it isn't always easy to start the day with a smile. Good to know, and not surprised to know that was commonplace for Cook. I will try to keep that in mind tomorrow ... and the next day ... and ...

My grandaughter stepped on a stingray a few weeks ago. Cried a lot. Got past it. Will she ever forget it? Nope. Will she wade at the beach again? Yep, but she won't forget it. Did she walk with a limp? For a while, yes. She was fishing on the seawall a few hours later, BUT, she won't ever forget it. We limp, we learn, we move forward, we fish. But we don't forget.

[RockinNReelin]

I just wanted to personally thank everyone who showed up to pay their respects and say thier final good byes. I know that Mark and I split up a year ago and I THOUGHT I was better prepared for this than I actually was. I felt a lot of love and support in the room today and I credit, you, Mark's friends and mine. Thank you all.

[DaveR]

Our privilege Sharon.

[Norm]

There really was so much more to this guy than any of us knew. Glad to have been there.

[Heywood]

Sadly, I got there too late to attend. ( I set new speed records from Jacksonville to Tampa).

I did find it fitting that the bay was flat calm yesterday afternoon. I could've sworn I saw a lone, tall skinny figure stalking the flats around the Clam Bar as I drove over the Skyway.

[John]

It was a privilege and an honour