Mark Phelps

Joelton Mark “The Shark” Phelps died on April 19, 2025, surrounded by family, in a house his grandparents had lived in, on a farm that five generations of his people have called home. He was 73 years old.

Mark was born in Seminole on July 24, 1951 to Joe and Edna Mae Phelps. Mark grew up on Lee Street, where he was a member of the neighborhood’s “President Street Gang.” He attended Seminole Schools and was a proud Chieftain. At SHS, he played saxophone in the marching band, starred on the debate team, and did not star on the Chieftains’ (in)famous 0-10 football team. He was a keyboardist in the “rich in sound” The Poor Boys band. Later he picked up guitar and loved playing with his friends and for his daughters. He graduated SHS in 1969 and enrolled in Oklahoma State University, earning his degree in Political Science in 1973.

While working as a social worker in Oklahoma City, Mark met Judith Lynn Jones. He married her on March 18, 1979. They were inseparable until she died five days before him, in the same house, surrounded by the same family, most of whom were quietly amazed that he’d lasted five days without her.

Mark was a lawyer in Seminole for 45 years, but his primary occupation could very well have been listed as “booster.” He belonged to the Seminole Rotary, Kiwanis, and Lion’s Clubs, and was a member of the National Champion Elks Lodge Ritual Team. For decades, he faithfully contributed to countless community causes and organizations, most famously as the long-time foreman of the Chieftain Football Chain Gang.

Mark’s second-greatest joy was taking his grandchildren to OSU games. His greatest joy: a Bedlam win. Mark’s passion for Oklahoma State athletics was unrivaled. He had season tickets to Pokes football, basketball, and baseball. He and Judy wore Cowboys gear every day. They rooted against the University of Oklahoma with the joyful fervor of British soccer hooligans.

Mark the Shark was, among other things, a loyal and doting family man, a pillar of his community, and a genius. He was also a good friend, and a gentle and generous soul. He would quietly slip you a hundred bucks when you were a broke college kid. He’d quietly pay for your car repairs when you were a broke adult. He always knew how to calm you in crisis, encourage your talents and loudly tell you how proud he was of you. He’d offer you the perfect compliment exactly when you needed to hear one, and he’d always take your side in a fight. He is still alive inside of the countless people to whom he gave so freely.

In addition to Judy, Mark is preceded in death by his parents and his older brother Ronnie. He is survived by his daughter Lauren, her husband Brad, and their children, Ben, Desmond, and Genevieve, who live at Phelps Farm; and his daughter Lane, her husband Jess, and their children Breckin and Jude who live in Los Angeles, CA.

The family is planning a private ceremony at a later date.