Mourning the Loss of Mark Chesler, “The world is a better place because he lived so deeply on behalf of others”
YPSILANTI, Mich. (Cornerhealth.org) – The Corner Health Center mourns the loss of Mark Chesler, the widower of the Corner’s founder Joan Chesler, who passed away this past week. We hope you will join us in sharing condolences and holding Mark's family in your hearts as they journey through grief.
After earning his PhD from the University of Michigan (1966), Mark began his passionate work in sociology. The UM graduate’s work helped marginalized groups in higher education (mainly challenging racism/sexism and implementing multiculturalism) and the experience of young adults and their families surviving childhood cancer and creating and sustaining social services. Mark’s work embodied many of the core values here at the Corner Health Center, (1) helping break barriers to become more equitable and (2) serving adolescents’ health and wellness needs with wraparound care.
“When I assumed the Corner's Executive Director role in 2022, Mark's was among the first counsel I sought as I acclimated to the incredible legacy of this place and Joan's giant footprints. I very much enjoyed my time getting to know Mark and, through him, learning about Joan and her inspiration to change the world right here in Ypsilanti. I will live in the gratitude and confidence that the world is a better place because Mark - and Joan - lived so deeply on behalf of others.”
Mark always provided our team with insight into Joan and her motivation to help establish the Corner Health Center back in 1981, changing Ypsilanti forever. During the Corner’s inaugural Three-Course Celebratory fundraiser (2024), the staff honored Mark as an instrumental piece to the Corner’s legacy and its inception. As someone always thinking of others and a thoughtful human being, Mark asked that any donations to celebrate his life go to organizations closest to him, including the Corner Health Center.
Mark Chesler with Board President Angela Johnson, founder Nancy Margolis, and Executive Director Alex Plum at the inaugural Three-Course Celebratory fundraiser (2024).