Necrology

Mark Wayne Fraser '75

Aug. 5, 1952-Feb. 12, 2023

Mark Wayne Fraser ’75 died on Feb. 12, 2023, in Rocky Hill, Conn. Born on Aug. 5, 1952, in Los Angeles, he grew up in Rye, N.Y., and came to Hamilton from Governor Dummer Academy (now The Governor’s Academy) in Byfield, Mass. On the Hill, he majored in English literature in anticipation of a career in journalism. He also played what a classmate termed “a mean trumpet” and was in the Hamilton Brass Choir all four years.

From Hamilton, Mark proceeded to the Missouri School of Journalism, earning his master’s degree in 1977. He then headed 125 miles west to join the staff of the Kansas City Times, where in the course of 10 years he was promoted from copy editor to reporter to night metropolitan desk editor to assignment editor for the metropolitan desk.

He was a member of the team of reporters awarded the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for their 16 months of investigative reporting into the collapse of two walkways in the Kansas City Hyatt Regency hotel that killed 114 people and injured 216 on July 17, 1981. He also filed stories for The New York Times as a regional correspondent.

While in Kansas City, Mark met and in 1985 married Gracen Rymar. They stayed together until 2012 and had a son and a daughter.

In 1987, Mark and Gracen moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., when he became editor and later market manager for Fairchild Publications. In 1992, he joined the staff of Cahners Publishing, for a time serving as publisher of a weekly business and fashion newspaper of the home textile industry, Home Textiles Today. The family settled in Larchmont, N.Y.

Having a longstanding interest in education, in August 2010 Mark received a master of arts in teaching degree from Manhattanville College, after which he taught for a time at several private schools, including the Thornton Donovan School in New Rochelle, N.Y.

Mark had several interests outside of his work. A member of the Larchmont Yacht Club, he would take his family sailing in Long Island Sound aboard his boat, Lazy Bones. He also continued to play the trumpet and collect Native American art. 

Hamilton provided him with a firm foundation both for his profession in journalism and his interest in music. In 1989, he wrote in an alumni survey: “It allowed me to recognize and develop my interest in writing as a career. It fostered my interest in the fine arts through my involvement in the Hamilton College Brass Choir.” He supported the College as a volunteer for the Career Center.

Mark W. Fraser is survived by his son, daughter, and sister. 

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