Mark Franco of Little Silver, born July 11, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York, died June 7. Mark was a loving father, husband, son, brother, uncle and beloved friend to so many.
Mark attended St. Rose of Lima grammar school in Freehold and graduated from Red Bank Catholic High School in 1990.
Mark had a charismatic, “larger-than-life” personality that was joyful and magnetic; he was the life of any party. Known as Mark Digger or NY Digger on social media, he amassed large networks of friends across the many communities he cared about.
Mark had a love for Disney World and vacationed there often with his family. He enjoyed being the “go-to-guy” on Disney information.
Mark was a boating, jet skiing and speed skiff enthusiast and was a member of the Long Branch Ice Boat and Yacht Club. Mark also loved snowmobiling and founded the annual Old Forge Family Fun Run in Old Forge, New York which encouraged safe family riding.
Mark was a highly skilled operating engineer and a proud member of I.U.O.E. Local 14-14B for more than 23 years. He was at Ground Zero and worked countless hours in the pit of World Trade Center Tower 1 in the recovery and remediation efforts.
In April 2019, Mark was diagnosed with an aggressive advanced stage four renal cell carcinoma. He journalized his fight along the way, always with a smile and a big thumbs up.
Mark is survived by his daughters, Gabriella and Miranda, ex-wife Liz Franco, and dog Bear; parents, Peter and Linda Franco; brother Peter Franco Jr. and wife Kristin; their children Shea, Audrey and Noelle; sister Lauren Franco Lucas and husband Lionel; and their children Juliana, Alina, Nathaniel, Catarina and Everett.
Due to COVID-19 related restrictions, there was limited viewing.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to NJ Make-A-Wish foundation to grant children with cancer a magical trip to Disney World. The address for NJ Make-A-Wish Foundation is 1384 Perrineville Road, Monroe Township, NJ 08831 or nj.wish.org.
