Mark Merriman Harlow's Obituary
Mark M. Harlow
Sept. 28, 1957 – Mar. 3, 2015
Mark Harlow of Tacoma, Washington passed away peacefully in his sleep Tuesday night due to a sudden heart attack. Mark was born in Tacoma and was a long time resident in Tacoma, Gig Harbor, and then Lacey. Mark was married to Kimberly A. (McAvoy) Harlow on Feb. 4, 1977 for 20 years. He happily spent his last 4 years with his sweetheart, Moira A Saner.
Mark graduated from Wilson High School in 1975 while working for Carini’s Landscaping then started Harlow Construction Company in 1977. He started Harlow Construction with little resources and built it into a very successful family business. He unexpectedly left his beloved business while currently building homes in Gig Harbor, dump trucking dirt and rock products around the Puget Sound area, and building roads, sidewalks, parks and ballfields, and underground utilities. He found pleasure going to work nearly every day no matter what he was doing whether he was at the end of a shovel or concrete tool, heavy equipment, dump truck, in a ditch, and of course in the office. Much of his hard work has left a lasting and timeless impression all around us glistening on a clear sunny day in the form of concrete asphalt and gravel surfaces, fields of dew covered grass, playgrounds our kids play in today and tomorrow, and our home’s rooftops and yards we go home to each day. Those countless rainy days will be taken care of by the miles of storm drains and ponds he has installed in his lifetime. Many of us drink from the waterlines he has installed and flush our toilets into the pipes and tanks he placed. He will never be forgotten in time and forever will be with us. He is deeply missed by all of us.
Mark was just recently starting to move toward retirement and spending about 35% of his time away from work enjoying a house in Palm Springs and spending time on his yacht “R&R” on the Puget Sound. He was a prominent member with the Tacoma Yacht Club and loved socializing with all the members. He enjoyed spending time with his family and friends any chance he could get.
Mark was the son of Merriman E. Harlow and Shirley L. (Webb) Harlow. He is survived and will be dearly missed by his two children Molly A. (Harlow) Ochs (Douglas), and Zachary M. Harlow (Kristina Miller) of Olympia. His eight grandchildren Sophia Ochs, Zoe Ochs, Lillian Harlow, Logan Harlow, Lucas Harlow, Mark Harlow, Aydin and Sorin Miller. His mother Shirley L. (Webb) Harlow, his two sisters Charmaine Williams and Rochelle Salas, his aunt (sister) Gay (Harlow) Farvour, his two nieces Carly Williams and Aubrey Salas, his two nephews Cody Williams and Corbin Salas, and lastly his best canine friend Jake Harlow.
Funeral services will be held on Friday the 13th of March, 2015, at 11:00 am in the Valley Chapel at Mountain View Funeral Home, 4100 Steilacoom Blvd SW, Lakewood, WA 98499. Visitation will be 2 – 8pm on Thursday, March 12, 2015. Reception to follow.
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