The editors of the Daily Messenger had an inkling of what readers would come to expect from Mark Syverud when he applied for a job.
Syverud, an Irondequoit native who had been working in newspapers in Florida, would later poke fun at the job-search process, such as it was, as painful to him as getting a root canal from a grumpy dentist. The time called for a new strategy, which he tried out on the first help-wanted ad (which were a thing back in the 1990s) he saw.
In the newspaper mail came a postcard that read, “Congratulations! You may already be a winner in the ‘Hire Mark Syverud as a Reporter’ Contest!”
What readers, co-workers and new friends in the Canandaigua community won when Syverud was hired is something his family had known since he was a 5-year-old telling jokes at the kitchen table or leaving an audience of fellow middle school students in Irondequoit rolling in the aisles after his participation in a speech contest.
His wife, Ellie Syverud, called him the “ultimate funmeister,” someone who reminded family members of the gregarious storytellers among their Norwegian relatives. Syverud, 73, was someone who never passed on the opportunity to share a quip or brighten someone’s day in his unique way, even as he struggled with Parkinson’s disease, which forced his early retirement and which, his family noted, he “survived” for 25 years before passing away from its complications on Jan. 6.
Almost every single sympathy card the family received mentioned her husband’s sense of humor, Ellie Syverud said in an email.
“His contribution to any conversation was always to tell a joke,” Ellie Syverud said. “Whenever we got in an elevator, which was often with all his medical appointments, he always said: ‘I’ll bet you’re wondering why I called you all here,’” Ellie said. “It always got a laugh.”
Finding humor in Canandaigua life
Kent Syverud recalled his brother serving as editor of his underground high school newspaper, the “Cochisequoit,” which started a long journalism career of poking fun at the pompous and lifting up regular folks with humor and respect for their stories.
Syverud spent most of his working life in the newspaper business as a photographer, journalist, columnist, and editor for newspapers in Margate, Florida, and then in Canandaigua.
Kevin Frisch, a former editor at the Daily Messenger, shared the story of Syverud’s “cover letter.”
Needless to say, Syverud was hired, and it wasn’t long before readers were enjoying his popular humor columns, many of which were laugh-out-loud funny and covered topics ranging from how he got that Messenger job (from which we stole the line about the grumpy dentist) to games he and his daughters invented and played on Friday Fun Nights to snow shoveling to whatever else struck him as funny and worth examining.
Behind that sense of humor was a really solid journalist, Frisch said.
Besides the who, what, where and when of the reports that make up a newspaper, Syverud encouraged reporters to dig beyond the topics that journalists think readers ought to know about. He relished the human-interest stories — emphasis on stories — of people who give their communities personality and soul and make them places worth living.
“When the Messenger decided to launch a Sunday edition, editors turned to Mark to make sure it succeeded,” Frisch said. “When they bought a chain of weekly newspapers in Monroe County (the former Wolfe Community Newspapers, then Messenger Post Newspapers), they turned to Mark to provide direction and day-to-day oversight.”
Diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2001, Syverud, then 50, retired six years later because he couldn’t do the job anymore: He couldn’t type because his hands shook too much from the disease, Ellie said.
In this present era when many government officials are only too happy to see a journalist retire, Syverud’s drew a different reaction.
This particular official urged Mr. Syverud in a note to reconsider because he presented something “extraordinary” to the community.
“Provoke us, inform us, challenge us, annoy us, make us think,” the note reads. “You did all these for me, and I know you did the same for countless others.”
After retiring, Syverud would go on to do so, but in a different way.
Living with Parkinson’s disease
Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative brain condition that impairs motor skills and other functions. Tremors are one of the disease’s most common symptoms; Syverud also suffered from periods of bradykinesia, where his movements slowed to a crawl.
A Messenger story quoted him, true to form, as referring to his support group as the “Movers and Shakers Club.”
Sometimes humorously and other times seriously, Syverud was passionate about helping others who were diagnosed with the disease and would even approach people in the grocery store to ask if they had it too so he could offer help, Ellie said.
“He considered himself a leader in our Parkinson’s support group meetings, always trying to help others deal with it,” Ellie said.
Having to take multiple medications, Syverud eventually opted for Deep Brain Surgery, or DBS, which he explained to readers in a story in the Daily Messenger. A slide show he created also was meant to educate people on how the surgery, while not a cure, helps with the disease’s symptoms.
“He wanted people to understand PD and help others who had it,” Ellie Syverud said.
Syverud: A friend for life and life of the party
Syverud, who Ellie moved to Virginia several years ago to be closer to family, provided comfort, support and yes, laughs to friends who also faced significant health challenges.
Richard Yurick, who with Syverud were fans of the Minnesota Vikings football team and shared interests in investing, church and movies and moviemaking, had a stem cell transplant 11 years ago; Syverud had one 12 years ago.
“So, he was calling me during my process, encouraging me and telling me what would happen next,” Yurick said in an email. “He inspired me to be generous with the nursing staff.”
Syverud and his close friends for years played games such as extreme croquet and gathered in the “clubhouse,” an old garage with a wood-burning stove so they could hang out in all kinds of weather, emailed Gigi Horwood-Benton, wife of one of those friends, the late Tom Benton.
Benton and Syverud enjoyed spending time together driving around, camping, laughing and telling jokes, going out to breakfast and taking road trips to Florida to visit another close friend.
At one time, Syverud and Benton wound up in the same hospital for a time after Benton was diagnosed with cancer. When their families visited, of course they played charades, Horwood-Benton said.
“This past year Tom was in the hospital with pneumonia and Mark and Ellie drove up to see him. Tom died in June,” Horwood-Benton said. “We are so glad they got to say goodbye to each other!”
Lesson learned from Parkinson’s disease
Family, including Ellie, daughters Jenny Arcidicono and Gretchen Syverud and their families, were especially dear to Syverud.
Syverud in 2009 told the late Daily Messenger columnist Dan Hall about how the disease changed his life. “It kind of surprised me what a blessing it was,” he told Hall. “So many go through life working their butts off and then they have a heart attack and die.”
Parkinson’s, he said, “Frees one up to just enjoy life.” That’s something he did before and after the diagnosis.
He loved to organize backyard games, particularly softball with crazy bases. For parties, each base had a special event; getting squirted with whipped cream is one example. He organized Friday Fun Night that included games such as balloon ball and others (some played at midnight!).
Dad jokes? But of course, and the goofier, the better. Daughter Gretchen tells of the time of a family trip to Mexico when her dad memorized the Spanish translation of a cheesy joke about mad cow disease and told it to every resort staff member that was willing to listen. “I think they appreciated it,” she said.
No need to ask him twice to take part in a campfire and eat s’mores.
Back when the movie “Mrs. Doubtfire” came out, daughter Jenny, then age 8, won two tickets to see the movie as art of a contest. Here’s what she wrote about her father:
“My dad is very funny, has a great sense of humor, is really nice and generous. He’ll take off work just to pick me up at school because the bus gives me a headache. He never yells at me even when I get in trouble (lets Mom do that). He helps me learn lots of things.”
As Syverud told Hall, the disease meant he didn’t have to prove anything anymore, but he was inspired to teach. His lesson: “What matters is your family; your friends.”
His favorite movie was “It’s A Wonderful Life” and like many families, the Syveruds watched it every Christmas.
The character Zuzu Bailey, daughter of main charcter George Bailey, says famously at the end of the movie that when a bell rings, an angel gets its wings.
Many would like to believe in the case of Syverud, the sound of a bell ringing is caused by the belly laughs of a team of angels, laughing uproariously at something their new colleague said or did.
In remembrance
Those looking to make a donation in Mark Syverud’s honor are asked to consider the Michael J. Fox Foundation or the Davis Phinney Foundation. A celebration of his life will be held at a future date.
Mike Murphy covers Canandaigua and other communities in Ontario County and writes the Eat, Drink and Be Murphy food and drink column. Follow him on X at @MPN_MikeMurphy.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Mark Syverud, journalist who found humor in life and Parkinson’s, dies at 73
Reporting by Mike Murphy, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
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