Mark Thomas Laflamme, age 54, passed away peacefully surrounded by loved ones on Thursday, October 24, 2019, in his home in Palo Alto. He was born on December 30, 1964, in Summit, New Jersey to Joseph Marcel Louis and Mary Ann (Blythe) Laflamme. He married his love, Bonnie Um, in 2008.
Mark spent most of his early life in Saudi Arabia, where his father worked in the energy industry. For high school, he attended Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts. He then graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans. Mark developed an appreciation for myriad cultures and had a wonderful ability to get along with others. After college, he worked in investment management at two storied firms – Moore Capital Management and Caxton Associates. He was hired by Ziff Brothers Investments to start up their operations in Hong Kong and then moved to Palo Alto, California where he and some colleagues started Crescent Park Management. Mark had a reputation for expertise in a wide range of investing fields and was known for his kind and friendly demeanor.
Mark brought a quiet determination to everything he did. While gaining increasing responsibilities in complex roles in finance, he found time to run ultramarathons, travel extensively, and raise a family.
Mark will forever be remembered by his wife and best friend, Bonnie, and their precious son, Hunter, by his mother, Mary Ann, and brother, Matthew, and by Bonnie's parents, Jun and Chung Um, and sister and brother-in-law, Margaret and Andre Clark.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated in memory of Mark on Saturday, November 2, 2019 at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of the Rosary Church, 3233 Cowper Street, Palo Alto. A Rosary will be held at 9:30 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, you may make contributions to the UCSF Cancer Center in Mark’s memory. Please direct your donation to the Gastrointestinal Cancer program: https://campaign.ucsf.edu/
Ed Note: Mark shared his health struggle with your editor in September of 2016 and always meant to tell the class, I think. I encouraged him to write a post but it just never happened.