Markus Alexander Novotny

June 14, 1956 - January 2, 2024

In loving memory ~

With profound sadness and heavy hearts, we announce Markus' passing on January 2nd, 2024, with his family by his side.

He was predeceased by his father, Fritz, and is survived by his mother Annelies, his wife of 40 years, Eve, his daughter Shena, son Kyle, sister Verena (Dan), and youngest sister Niki (Andre), and his many nieces and nephews.

Beloved son of Fritz Otto and Annelies (Stasser) Novotny, Markus or "Maxi" to his parents, was born in Vienna, Austria. Mark's parents were both ski instructors in Austria and that's when his love of downhill skiing began at a very young age. In 1965, as his father pursued his career with the United Nations, his family moved from Vienna to Montreal. His family's passion for the sport continued as integral members of the Austrian Ski Club of Montreal.

In 1979 Mark was transferred with Rapifax (Ricoh) from Montreal to Vancouver and eventually became the Western Manager. After being set up on date by a mutual friend, Mark and Eve married in 1983. In 1992, Mark and his family moved from North Vancouver to Nanaimo and after working in a few IT positions, he happily became the go-to-guy to help solve family and friend's computer issues.

After retiring from Vancouver Island Regional Library in 2017, Mark enjoyed weekly coffee time with the 'guys', nature walks and hikes with his friends and family, hitting up the river for a summer swim; and getting out on his bicycle for different excursions. He also became

a valued, core team member for both Federal and Provincial Elections at the local level.

Markus was an avid reader of fiction and was also very passionate about music, so much so that he even had his own music room. For those who had the privilege of knowing Mark, he did a great job completing or researching any task or job, was quick-witted, thoughtful, reliable, and a fantastic sounding board. On top of that, he had no problem providing a dash of sass to keep you on your toes.

As Mark would say when signing off "Bye for Now" and "So jung kumma nimma zam" (so young we will never be together again).

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." ~ Winnie the Pooh

We would like to extend a warm thank you to our families, friends, VIHA's Home Care Workers, Occupational Therapist, RNs, Palliative Doctors and Nurses, Paramedics, Nurse Next Door, the BC Cancer Centre, and all the various specialists who kept things normal, light, and fun during Markus' illness and treatment.

A celebration of Markus' life will be held from 1:30pm-4:00pm on Saturday, February 24th, 2024, at Brechin United Church located at 2020 Estevan Road, Nanaimo.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that you either plant something in Mark's memory or make a memorial donation to a charity of your choice.

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