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Obituary: Richard Marks
Posted on 9 January 2009 by
Kalaupapa resident and advocate for people affected by leprosy, Richard Marks, died on 9th December 2008 aged 79.
After being diagnosed with leprosy in 1956 Richard Marks was sent to Kalaupapa on Molokai. He had already seen his father, older brother and younger sister be sent to this peninsula, as had been his grandmother and an aunt and uncle with leprosy.
The work of Father Damien inspired Marks to become an advocate for people affected by leprosy. In a 1968 article for the former Beacon magazine he stated “I am a leper” and spoke out about the injustice of continuing to isolate people affected by leprosy. According to his wife, Gloria Marks, the Department of Health threatened to sue him over that interview, but in 1969 the State’s 104-year-old quarantine policy was repealed.
He also spoke to international officials and medical professionals at International Leprosy Conference meetings in Europe and India and at the Quest for Dignity Exhibition organised by the International Association for Integration Dignity and Economic Advancement (IDEA) at the United Nations in 1997. In addition, he met Mother Theresa, Pope John Paul II and the royalty of Belgium.
Marks was deeply interested in every aspect of leprosy, the life of Father Damien and the settlement at Kalaupapa and found out as much as he could about them. He and his wife set up Damien Tours in 1966. His wife has promised to continue conducting the tours through Kalaupapa for as long as she can. In addition, Marks established the Kalaupapa National Historical Park in 1980 with the help of late Hawaii Congress woman Patsy Minsk, who introduced the necessary legislation.
In 1996, the Damien-Dutton Award was presented to Marks in recognition of his efforts to educate people about leprosy and the history of Kalaupapa. In a subsequent interview with The Associated Press Marks said “They have all the worst ideas about leprosy being such a contagious disease, which is plain nonsense. Over 1,100 people have come here to work since Father Damien and Father Damien was the only one who got the disease.”
Unfortunately, Marks will not be able to witness the canonization of Father Damien in 2009, but he had been a strong proponent for his sainthood and was delighted when in July of 2008 Pope Benedict XVI attributed a second miracle to Father Damien.
Categories: News and Notes, North and Central America, USA