Hon. (Ret) Mark B. McFeeley, age 80, passed away peacefully in his home with his wife Patricia (Patty) and children Matthew and Morgan at his side along with his brother Neil and wife Molly on September 7, 2024 after a 2+ year battle with lung cancer.

Mark was a federal bankruptcy judge for the District of New Mexico for 27 years, retiring in 2009. He was also chief judge of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Tenth Circuit from 1995-2009, having been instrumental in its formation and served on the Bankruptcy Rules Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States. Mark was too humble to tout his own accomplishments, but for his service he was awarded the Seth D. Montgomery Distinguished Judicial Service Award by the State Bar of New Mexico in 2009 and elected the President of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges in 2003-04. One article noted that the "number and variety of leading decisions he issued on a wide range of bankruptcy and state law questions, established him as an intellectual and organizing force for [bankruptcy practice in] both the District of New Mexico and the entire nation."

Mark was born in Florida to William and Belle (Levy) and the family traveled to many states and abroad as William was in the Air Force. Mark remembered living in England for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. (And was again in London, 70 years later, visiting Matthew, on the day of King Charles' Coronation). Mark went to Lompoc High School on the central coast of California (near Vandenberg AFB) and remained friends with many of his classmates. He was appointed to the US Merchant Marine Academy from which he graduated in 1966, serving as a second mate, navigating cargo ships sailing to destinations around the world. He came to Albuquerque and began his studies at University of New Mexico law school in 1969.

In 1972, shortly after his law school graduation and Patty's medical school graduation they were married in Denver. While pursuing independent careers in law and medicine respectively, they remained each other's biggest cheerleaders. Matthew and Morgan remember that their dad was often the one who made it home in time to cook dinner and get it on the table for the family, while Patty was working late. Mark was the cook in the household; Patty had the toolbox and fixed things around the house.

Mark was active in the American Indian law program in and after law school and clerked for the Honorable Oliver Seth in Santa Fe before starting a law firm with his best friend Randy Felker. Randy and Mark shared a specific brand of dry humor, a love of cooking, good food and wine.  They remained close friends until Randy's death in 2021.

Beginning in the Merchant Marines, Mark had a life-long love of the water and boating. Mark and Patty equally shared that love and had boating adventures in New Mexico, the Caribbean, on the Chesapeake Bay, and later, in Florida, where they have been partially based since 2010.  In 2019-2020 they spent 6 months completing "The Great Loop", a boating trip from Florida, up the East Coast and through the Erie Canal to the Great Lakes and into Canada, and then back.

Mark was an avid reader, a creative chef, a Jeopardy buff and an expert in completing NYT crossword puzzles. His wisdom, sense of humor, generosity, loyalty to and love for friends and family will be sorely missed.

In addition to his immediate family, noted above, Mark is survived by Kathryn Kark (foster daughter), his sister Sharon and brother Neil, grandchildren Beatrice and Robin and a number of nieces and nephews.

A memorial to Mark will be held on Friday,  November 1, 2024 from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm at the Federal Courthouse, 333 Lomas Blvd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102.  If planning to attend, please arrive early to ensure time to pass through courthouse security. In lieu of flowers or gifts, donations may be made to Equal Access To Justice NM, which works to ensure that people of limited means can access legal advice and support: https://www.eaj-nm.org/donate.html or the RoadRunner Food Bank: https://www.rrfb.org/give/give-funds/, which Mark supported throughout the years.

A separate memorial will be held in Florida at a later date, to spread Mark's ashes in the Gulf of Mexico, per his final wishes.

Echoing a Jimmy Buffet song that Mark used to play at the end of every boating trip, "it's been a lovely cruise."