Anne Frank's Stepsister
SCC Grad Dies in Car AccidentFormer SCC student remembered for commitment to Native American causes
“We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.”
-Dakota Indian Proverb
Mark N. Kraft, 22, of Everett, died suddenly in an auto accident Sept. 19, 2003. Kraft was a graduate of SCC who attended from 1999 to 2001. He was entering his senior year in communications at the University of Washington and hoped to work in broadcasting. He also worked at Costco for the past four years.
Kraft’s sister Johanna (Wade) Cole graduated from Shoreline, and his brother Jason Kraft will be attending Shoreline’s music program next quarter. Ken La Fontaine, SCC faculty advisor, gave part of the eulogy at the funeral Mass which was held in Lynnwood at St. Thomas More Church on Sept. 26. “Mark was an outstanding young man who would have been a future leader,” La Fontaine said.
Kraft, an Inuit, was one of the leaders of the First Nations Club of SCC. “Mark and I didn’t like the way that non-natives had put stereotypes on us; we wanted to let people know about 21st century Indians,” said Gail Morris, former First Nations president. Kraft actively recruited new members (both native and non-native). He also helped organize the First Nation’s Symposium in 2000 which raised awareness about Native American issues.
“He gave a lot to charity and was always willing to help others,” said Kraft’s mother, Evelyn Kraft. She mentioned the time he bought a coat for a boy that didn’t have one, and the time he bought a plane ticket for someone in need. Kraft also tutored math.
“He would help me any time I needed it without thinking about what was in it for him,” said Morris. “He was a very smart young man and helped me to pass algebra.”
Some of Kraft’s other interests included American Sign Language and drama.
“Mark will be missed, he was a shaker and a mover, with a wonderful smile,” said Morris.