Mark SHAMES

SHAMES, Mark I. 69, passed away peacefully on July 9, 2020 at his home in St. Petersburg, Florida surrounded by his family. He was a faithful husband to Barbara for 48 years, loving father to Elizabeth and Megan (Richard) and proud grandfather to Isabella, Rocco, Giuliana and Gracie. He is survived by his mother, Reba; and his sister, Amy (Luger). He was predeceased by his father, Morris; and his sister, Rana. Mark loved the outdoors, fishing, the North Carolina Mountains and travelling to Italy where he learned to speak Italian. Mark was born in Floral Park, NY. He grew up in Westfield, NJ and earned his B.A. in Religion from Gettysburg College in 1973 where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta Fraternity. Mark earned his J.D. from Stetson University College of Law in 1976 and began his practice of law in St. Petersburg. In 1996 Mark was elected a Circuit Judge for the 6th Judicial Circuit of Florida where he sat on the bench for 21 years. He presided over cases in the family law, probate and guardianship, civil law and criminal law divisions. In 2011 Mark was awarded the Judicial Appreciation Award from the St. Petersburg Bar Association recognizing his excellence in the courtroom. In 2019 The St. Petersburg Police Department created the Judge Mark I. Shames Rookie of the Year award to recognize Mark's dedication and guidance that he provided to a generation of new police officers. Mark spent 41 years serving our local and state communities. Over the years Mark became involved in and took leadership roles in numerous civic and community activities. He felt a responsibility to make our community a better place to live. His Chamber of Commerce activities included Leadership St Pete, the Community Alliance and the Small Business Council. He was a member of the St. Petersburg Planning Commission, the first St. Petersburg Historic Preservation Commission, the Citizens Review Committee for the St. Petersburg Police Department, Suncoast Tiger Bay, St Pete Kiwanis, and Suncoasters. Mark's professional activities included President of the St Petersburg Bar Association, President of the Pinellas County Trial Lawyers Association and a speaker at numerous Stetson Law School, St Pete Bar and Florida Bar programs. Mark was passionate about the law and felt a great responsibility to his civic duty in serving his community. To that end he became very involved in a number of judicial activities around the state of Florida. His proudest by far was serving the Florida Judicial College as a faculty member, Associate Dean and eventually Dean of the College from 2013 to 2015. In addition he served as Criminal Law and Family Law Department Head of the Florida College of Advanced Judicial Studies, Executive Committee Member of the Florida Conference of Circuit Judges, Vice-Chair of Florida Court Educational Council and Chair of the Florida Bar Grievance Committee. In Mark's honor donations may be made to the Mark Shames Scholarship Fund at Gettysburg College. http://www.gettysburg.edu/MarkShamesScholarship Gettysburg College 300 N. Washington Street Box 423 Gettysburg, PA 17325. Or to The Mark Shames Research Advocacy Program for The Exon 20 Group at ICAN (International Cancer Advocacy Network). https://askican.org/namedprograms/mshames.html - ICAN (Mark Shames Program/Exon 20 Group) International Cancer Advocacy Network 27 West Morten Avenue Phoenix AZ 85021, PH: 602-618-0183. A celebration of life will be held at a later date due to COVID 19 restrictions. www.brettfuneralhome.net