'Everybody Wishes They Had A Father Like Mark Weber'
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Friends and family are mourning the death of a beloved soldier, author and family man as Lt. Col. Mark Weber died Thursday after a three-year battle with cancer.
He was 41 years old.
"I love being a soldier for 100 different reasons," said Weber during an interview with the Minnesota National Guard.
Weber was the type of soldier every soldier wants to be. From his rise from Private First Class, to serving his country overseas, Weber was a fighter to the very end.
"I've never seen anybody like him," Scott Mills said. "Never met anybody like that guy."
Mills worked with Weber in the National Guard for years. The two became close friends and would frequently get together to talk about their families, their health, and also the book Weber was writing for his three sons.
"Watching him do it after we discussed it, and watching how he did it was remarkable," Mills said.
The book, "Tell My Sons" was picked up by Random House and can be found in bookstores across the nation. But it's just a fraction of what Weber did with what time he had.
He sang with his sons at last year's Army birthday, and last August he received the "Legion of Merit" from General Martin Dempsey.
On Weber's Caring Bridge site there's a quote, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
That quote is exactly how Mills will remember his friend.
"How he prepared everyone around him for his death because he knew he was going to die, to me was probably the bravest thing I've ever seen," Mills said. "I think everybody wishes they had a father like Mark Weber. What he did was nothing short of remarkable."
Weber's family wants to thank everyone who has offered support during his battle with cancer.
Weber will appear on the cover of Parade Magazine for Father's Day this Sunday.
