This is Candy Franks, Mark's sister.  There are a few stories about Mark in 1960 when Mark had just recently turned four years old that I would like to share with you.

We were moving from March AFB, California to Minot AFB, North Dakota.  We were driving through Utah and Wyoming. Mark was standing in the back seat between the two front seats most of the time.  We are in Utah somewhere and Mark said "I remember this place".  We all said yeah, right Mark, you have never even been out of California. So he continues to describe a hill or mountain up ahead after we make a slight right curve. We get up there and it was exactly as Mark described.  It was so strange and hard to believe.  This happened several times as we continued on through Utah and Wyoming.  Mama and I had thought he might be John Westley Hardin reincarnated.  He was our Grandma's cousin and even at a young age Mark looked like him.  Who knows for sure.  

We stopped at Yellowstone National Park during our trip. The first night the rangers said the bears were acting up and not to sleep in a tent but to sleep in the car.  It's a good thing we had a station wagon so we had room for the four of us to sleep comfortable.  Unfortunately, Mama gave Mark some Castoria before we went to sleep.  I was sleeping in the front seat, Mark was sleeping in the back seat and Mama and Jim Treat were sleeping in the very back.  I woke sometime during the night and saw there was a bear at the side window. He stood up and started tp rock the car. Of course everyone woke up with this.  And of course that is when the Castoria kicked in and Mark shit all over the back seat.  With the bear out side rocking the car we couldn't open any windows.  The bear finally leaves (probably from the smell) and we got the windows down a little and mama got Mark and the seat cleaned up.  The next day the rangers said it would be safe to pitch our tent and sleep in it that night.  We went to a different camp site and pitched the tent and that night was fine. The next morning mama made pancakes and we were just sitting down to eat. Mark had his pancake with peanut butter and syrup and had just started to eat when a bear cam up to the table.  Jim, mama and myself run up a little hill that was there and kept yelling to Mark to come up there.  Of course Mark said he was not going to leave his pancake and let the bear have it and just kept eating.  All the while we are still yelling at him to get up and come up the hill.  So, Jim turns to mama and said, Elsie, go get Mark.  Mama looks at me and said, Candy, go get Mark.  I turned back to mama and said you had him go get him yourself.  Of course through all of this Mark is still scaring down his pancake. The bear stands up on the table, we are yelling at Mark and Mark just keeps eating and saying he is not going to let the bear get his pancake.  All of a sudden the bear gets down and just walked  away.  We were all shook up over this except guess who, Mark.

We continued on to Minot AFB.  They didn't have base housing ready yet so we rented a house in the small town of Glenburn, population 300.  We lived in one house for three months then moved two blocks to a house that had running water, electricity, a bathroom and heat all of which the first house had none of.   Across the street on the left side of the house was a bar and the town hall. While Mark is playing outside on day he walked over to the bar and went in, sat on a bar stool and started to talk to all the old men in there.  Mama went looking for him and found him in the bar. She apologized to the men and said she would make sure Mark didn't bother them again.  All the men said no, they enjoyed listening to Mark tell them all his tells about the wild west and the outlaws. So after that Mark went to the bar a couple times a week.

Across the street in front of the house was the Lutheran Church. My girlfriend from school taught Sunday school there. I went to church every Sunday and then we would get together later,  One Sunday Mark wanted to go to church with me and I said he could go to Sunday school but he wanted to go to the church service. Mama told me to take him with me, so very reluctantly  I took him with me.  Well, that happened to be the Sunday they were talking about their finances which went on  for about 30 minutes.  When the minister was finished he asked if anyone had any questions. And of course, Mark stood up and raised his hand.  I'm trying to pull him back down and lower his arm and he is pushing me away. The minister saw Mark and said, Yes young man, how can I help you.   Everyone turned and looked at Mark and said what a cute little boy, I just wanted to crawl under the pew, I was so embarrassed.  So, Mark said, "I came to church to hear about God and so far all you have talked about is money. I want to know when you are going to start talking about God."  The minister said he quite agreed and it was time to start talking about God.  Mark sat there intently and listened to what the minister had to say.  After the church service I walked Mark home.  He walked ahead of me and every step he took I hit the back of his head. 

I know there are more things I could tell about Mark but will quit now.  He was my wonderful younger brother who I oved very much.