Marc SUTHERLAND

SUTHERLAND, Marc Lyle 69, of Tampa passed away on September 23, 2023. He was well-loved by his friends and family and all cats; he will be greatly missed. Marc had a quirky sense of humor and fancied himself a curmudgeon. He was preceded in death by his parents, John Lyle and Joyce Mae Sutherland. He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Cindy Sutherland and his sister, Susan Ann Smith (Ken), as well as other beloved family members. Marc loved growing up in Drew Park area of Tampa, where he was able to play outside and find wildlife in the ditches. He was a Boy Scout. His troop leader was his father Lyle, who probably enjoyed camping more than Marc did. As Marc approached his teens, he and his sister Susan discovered the new upcoming music of the 60s and early 70s and shared this music after their parents had gone to bed. Marc graduated from Leto High School in 1972. Marc received a B.A. in Advertising from the University of Florida and then four days later landed a career position at the Winn Dixie corporate office in Tampa where he would work for 21 years. In his initial position, Marc supervised the scheduling, layout, and production of Winn-Dixie's weekly advertising for a division of 115 stores. He was then promoted to Marketing Director and in this role created and managed numerous promotional and PR initiatives, many of which partnered Winn-Dixie with the local advertising media and national brands or food brokers. Marc went on to partner with a media buyer to found and operate a full-service advertising agency, Sutherland & Wilcox, Inc. The partners effectively developed their agency infrastructure and client base (primarily handling retail and national brand consumer packaged goods accounts), and within two years achieved profitability. Marc left the agency business in 2003 to take a marketing and development position with the food bank, America's Second Harvest of Tampa Bay (now Feeding America Tampa Bay), a non-profit. Marc was president of AAF Tampa Bay, 2001-2002 and former Communication Committee Chairman. He treasured the lasting friendships he made within this organization. In 2011, retirement was calling. Marc used this time to work on his 1926 bungalow, listen and add to his eclectic album/cassette/cd collection, join the Seminole Heights Community Garden, sip wine with the Grapeful Dead wine tasting group, and travel to new destinations. He liked to laugh at people who asked, "What do you do with your time now that you are retired?" Friends and family are invited to an open house Celebration of Marc's life on October 29, at 1:30-4 pm, at The Cuban Club, 2010 Avenida Republica de Cuba, Tampa. Please dress casually. Guests are encouraged to bring copies of their favorite personal photos of Marc to display at the celebration. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Meals on Wheels of Tampa, https://mowtampa.org/donate/new-donations/ or World Central Kitchen, https://donate.wck.org/give/499865/#!/donation/checkout .