Mark I. Elwell, DVM was born on January 29, 1957 in Enid, Oklahoma to Don and Callene Elwell. He died on July 15, 2013.

Raised in Fairview, Oklahoma, Mark started a life of hard work by charging girls to ride in his pony-drawn cart. From an early age, he loved to help his dad at the farm and continued to do so throughout his life.

Mark was proud to be one of Slater's Boys, a group of young men who harvested wheat under the guidance of Jim Slater. Once he started high school, Mark continued to work in addition to being active in F.F.A., basketball, and football. He graduated from Fairview High School in 1975.

Mark attended Oklahoma State University where he was elected a member of President's Leadership Council and he received his B.S. in Animal Science in 1979. He received his DVM from the Oklahoma State University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1982.

Upon graduation, Mark moved to Yukon, Oklahoma where he began practicing veterinary medicine at West Yukon Animal Hospital. He was still practicing there at the time of his death. Mark ran every day and loved to play golf. He also enjoyed snow skiing and canoeing. Some of his favorite times, however, were tailgating with his family and friends on game days in Stillwater.

Mark was preceded in death by his parents, Don and Callene Elwell.

He is survived by his wife, Denice; son, Marcus and wife Shannon of Oklahoma City; son, Lucas of Houston; brother, Phillip of Fairview; brother, John of Custer, South Dakota; brother, Chad of Los Angeles; sister, Teresa Nichols of Fairview; and numerous other relatives.

Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m., Saturday, July 20, 2013 at Trinity Baptist Church in Yukon, Oklahoma. Interment is at 3:00 p.m. Saturday at Fairview Cemetery in Fairview, Oklahoma.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to Pets and People, 701 Inla Ave.,Yukon, Oklahoma, and OSU Foundation for the Companion Animal Fund, Fund #2884200, c/o Sharon Worrell, 308 McElroy Hall, Stillwater OK 74078.