ALLEN, Mark Galen

Mark Galen Allen, 27, left this world March 10, 2009 peacefully on the wings of angels while surrounded by his family. He was welcomed with open arms into Heaven by his dad, Wayne J. Allen, and grandparents, James A. Orem, Walter and Vera Allen, Clifford Wood and Herman Wright. Mark was born Oct. 20, 1981 in Tucson. He was diagnosed at an early age with Charcot-Marie Tooth Syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease. He was confined to a wheelchair at an early age, but never complained. He loved anything mechanical and was his mom’s greatest champion when she was restoring her cars. He loved sitting in them and going for rides; he always said, “Faster, faster.” Mark attended school in Kearny when he was young and then transferred to the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind in Tucson when he was six. He remained there until he graduated at age 22. He then moved back home to Dudleyville and was a client at the Arc in Kearny. Mark is survived by his parents, Connie and Neal Wood of Dudleyville; sister, Corrie (Josh) Weeks; nephews and niece, Jacob, Justin and Emily Weeks of Gilbert; and grandmothers, Hazel Wright and Georgianna Wood of Kearny. A memorial service for Mark will be held March 28 at 2 p.m. at the Fellowship Baptist Church in Kearny.