Richard "Mark" McLaughlin, 71, of Grinnell, IA, completed his earthly journey on Wednesday, May 4, 2022, at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines. A funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 am on Saturday, August 20, 2022 (Mark's birthday), at St. Mary Catholic Church in Grinnell. Interment will be at a later date. Please join the family at a luncheon which will follow the services in the church hall. Military honors will be held at 4:00 pm on Friday, August 19, 2022, at the Smith Funeral Home in Grinnell. A visitation will follow, and his family will receive friends from 4:30 pm until 7:00 pm at the funeral home. Memorials may be designated to the Ronald McDonald House, St. Mary Catholic Church, or St. Jude Children's Hospital, and mailed in care of the Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 368, Grinnell, Iowa 50112. Memories and condolences may be shared with his family online at www.smithfh.com. Mark was the son of Joseph Wright McLaughlin and Marjorie Pearl (Henry) McLaughlin and was born on August 20,1950, in Macon, MO. He was raised in the Macon, Anabel and Shelbina, MO area and graduated from South Shelby High School in Shelbina, MO in 1968. Mark honorably served his country in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War period and was stationed on the destroyer, USS Taussig. On January 3, 1970, he was united in marriage to Dorothea Dixon at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Hannibal, MO. Their marriage was blessed with three children, Dayna, Matthew and Allison. They raised their family in Monroe City, MO, where Mark worked for his father at McLaughlin Implement Company, an Allis-Chalmers dealership. Mark later worked as a building maintenance supervisor at Kuhlman Diecasting Company, and also served as an auxiliary police officer for 18 years in Monroe City, MO. In 1992, Mark and Dottie moved to Grinnell where they were both employed by ASI Sign Systems. Mark was instrumental in the installation of the electrical systems in the new ASI facility. Later, he was employed with Meisner Electric in Newton, IA. In 2000, Mark was hired as an electrician for Grinnell College from which he retired in 2016. After retiring, he worked part-time at Smith Funeral Home in Grinnell, where he graced many families with his kindness and compassion. He was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church, the 3rd Degree Knights of Columbus, and the Newburg Legion Post #640. Some of Mark's interests were Allis-Chalmers toy implements and collectibles, gardening and yard work, grilling, performing handy jobs around the house, puttering in his garage and walking his beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Sunnie. His most prized interests were his children and grandchildren. Mark had a patriotic love of his country and the military, especially those who were veterans of the Vietnam war era. He always made a special effort to speak to anyone affiliated with the military. Mark is survived by his wife, Dottie, of 52 years; daughter, Dayna (Dustin) Turkington of Montezuma, IA; son, Matt (Nicole) McLaughlin of Newton, IA; and daughter, Allison Kramer of Kansas City, MO; grandchildren, Blake Rueter, MacKenzie, Brady, and Maxwell Ellis, Abigail and Katelyn Kramer; step-grandchildren: Brianna and Carlee Turkington, Carter, Trent and Lainey Vander Schel, Zach (Alexandria) Keenan, Tyler (Samantha) Keenan, Noah (Erin Patterson) Keenan, Austin Keenan and two step great-grandchildren, Okie and Hollis Keenan. Mark was very close to his only sibling, Joseph Michael McLaughlin (Marilyn) of Paris, MO, who survives. Other survivors include his nephews Jay (Wendy) McLaughlin and family, Curt (Barbie) McLaughlin and family, one uncle, Keith McLaughlin and cousins from the McLaughlin and Henry families; step-sisters Karen (Ron) Hunt and Joan Rafter. He is also survived by many in-laws from the Dixon family. He was preceded in death by his parents, step-mother Alice, mother and father-in-law (Bob and Sylva Dixon); infant grandson, Henry Wright McLaughlin; sisters-in-law, Julie Link and Julann McLaughlin and brother-in-law, Terry Dillard.