Meat cutter's obit stokes interest, laughter

An obituary of a former meat cutter at a Cape Girardeau grocery store is generating thousands of smiles.

The obit of Mark Ervin depicts the father as a nonserious, mischievous man who worked hard at being lazy and simply liked to have fun and make people laugh. And maybe he felt OK making folks a little uncomfortable while doing so.

Ervin died Wednesday at his home surrounded by his family after a battle with renal cell carcinoma.

"He died as he lived, in dramatic fashion and without pants," the obituary stated. "He would have liked you to believe he was still younger than 62 years old."

The obit as of Thursday afternoon had been viewed more than 25,000 times on semissourian.com, about 25 times more than a typical obituary. It has been shared widely on social media, and is already the most viewed item on semissourian.com this year.

"On Jan. 29, 1983, he somehow managed to convince Susan Ervin to marry him, in front of God and everyone, with a ceremony including tuxedos that can only now be called "exceptionally '80s," the obit read. "Upon looking back at this day, many historians and archivists agree the nuptials transpired solely due to a maneuver Mark would trademark as "The Dirty Dog."

Later, the obit stated, "He was preceded in death by almost every person who ever lived on this planet, including, but not limited to, Abraham Lincoln and John Bonham."

Mark Ervin's son Nick Ervin told the Southeast Missourian he was the author of the obit, and had been working on it for a couple of months. He said he spoke about the obit with his father, and other family members were on board with the unconventional memorial.

"I had read a few funny ones online that had given me inspiration," Nick Ervin said. "I spoke with him many times leading up to his passing about what he wanted. He was always a fun-loving, easygoing guy and he was larger than life. I felt he needed something to send him off that was honoring him and letting people know how much he lived life each day."

Nick Ervin said his father was diagnosed with the cancer on June 3, 2016, and he lived longer than medical expectations.

"The fact he lived as long as he did is a testament to how well he lived life," Nick Ervin said.

When told that the obit was popular and bringing about smiles and laughter, Nick Ervin said, "That's what happened with Dad. That's the biggest thing he enjoyed was putting a smile on someone's face."

Here is the link to the obituary: http://www.semissourian.com/story/2538317.html