Dr. Mark Reininga, a beloved father, brother, and husband who devoted his life to caring for people who were suffering died on Friday. He was 71.

He passed away in his sleep at his home in Athens, Ohio.

Mark was born in Evansville, Indiana to Warren and Gussie Reininga in 1948. He grew up in Athens as the eldest of four brothers, Paul, Eric and Jon. His family spent several years in Nigeria when he was a child and a teenager, an experience that impacted him deeply and one he'd speak fondly of for the rest of his life.

After a year at Ohio University he joined the United States Navy, where he served as a medic in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He moved to Lake Tahoe, California on his return and eventually enrolled at Foothill Junior College before transferring to Stanford University. He loved to joke that upon receiving his Stanford admission, he called the school several times to make sure that it hadn't been sent to him by mistake. He graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science.

In 1981, he graduated from medical school at George Washington University in D.C. After completing his residency at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, he started his career in the National Health Service Corps, and went on to work as a family practice doctor for under-resourced communities in Wisconsin, Ohio, and New Mexico. He worked in prisons, drug-treatment facilities and took loving care of people with mental illness. He leaves behind thousands of patients across the country who are better off for the time he spent caring for them

Also in 1981, he married Hendrieka Fitzpatrick, who he met in medical school. Over the next fifteen years, they'd have six children together — Erin, Adrienne, Ben, Nathaniel, Grace and Micaela. He was a loving, committed, endlessly patient and generous father, who loved puns, creative junk food combinations, and telling his children anecdotes about the ways of the world ("geography lessons").

In 2010, he married Stephanie Ares in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The couple moved together back to Athens to care for Mark's father, Warren, and his brother, Paul, both of whom passed away in recent years. At the time of his death, he was working at the Hopewell Clinic — a job he loved.

He was blessed with the gift of conversation and a true love for people, whether his lifelong friends and family or total strangers. He was intellectually curious and had a great respect for people in all circumstances. He cared deeply about those who were suffering and devoted his life to caring for people who did not have others to care for them. More than anything, Mark had a tremendous love for life — for travel and adventure, new experiences, and stories — and an enormous heart that was always open.

He is survived by his two brothers, Jon and Eric, wife Stephanie, children Adrienne, Ben, Nate, Grace, Micaela, and stepchildren Stuart and Allison. He will be sorely missed by many.

"I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The function of man is to live, not to exist." —Jack London

A memorial service will be announced at a later date. Local arrangements are with Jagers & Sons Funeral Home. Please share a memory, a note of condolence or sign the online register at www.jagersfuneralhome.com.