Mark Fry lost his life in the line of professional duty 38 years ago. Mark was originally from Millhousen, a small, rural town near Greensburg, Indiana. He was a graduate of Indiana University. Mark worked for the Marion County Health Department in the late 1970’s. He was very active in IEHA and was a member of Central Chapter. He was the IEHA State Treasurer at the time of his death. Mark was highly revered and respected by co-workers.  He was good natured, dependable, and was always ready to help. He loved his job, and his enthusiasm for environmental health was obvious.

On September 1, 1979, an oil spill was reported at the Mariwood Trailer Park on the far west-side of Indianapolis. Workers installing telephone cable had ruptured a pipe that supplied fuel oil to the trailer park. Mark volunteered to take the inspection, which was out of his district, as a favor to his co-worker since it was the start of Labor Day weekend. Oil was in the bottom of a six foot deep trench and seeping into a nearby stream. Mark was using a piece of metal gutter in the trench to divert the oil away from the stream when the walls of the trench collapsed. 

Central Chapter established a special award in honor of Mark Fry. The recipient of this award is to be someone who exhibits Mark’s qualities and characteristics. This person is someone who is dedicated, selfless and devoted to protecting the environment and public health.