We want you to meet SKT employee, Mark Nale, who is our Construction Specialist. He’s been with SKT for three great years now. Mark plans, organizes, and works with SKT contractors, keeping projects running smoothly, and helping solve any issues that may arise. Mark says, “It fits me.” We agree, and we’re so glad he’s a member of the SKT team.

Born September 8, 1959, in Columbus, Ohio, Mark Alan Nale was adopted at the age of four months by his parents, who subsequently adopted his two siblings – a younger brother and then a sister – all three children from different families.

Mark’s father worked in the aircraft industry, and when Mark was eight years old, his family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. Then, on Groundhog Day – February 2, 1976 – to be exact, the family moved to Wichita, Kansas, “The Aircraft Capitol of the World.” By that time, Mark was in the middle of his junior year in high school, making it a difficult move for this shy, quiet young man. He didn’t even get to play any sports that year. But the following year, he more than made up for it because, as a senior player, his Wichita Heights High School basketball team won the state championship with an incredible 23-0 season!

One week after graduating from high school, Mark went to work for Southwestern Bell as a Supplies Attendant. Within a little over a year, he was a Cable Splicer Technician. He also enjoyed playing softball on various Wichita city leagues. It was at one of these games in the spring of 1987 that he first spotted, and then at another game that summer, he actually met, a spectator named Judi. They were married the next year, on May 21, 1988, and are approaching the 30^th anniversary of their wedding day.

Fast-forward, and in 2009, after 32-1/2 years of service, Mark retired from ATT&T (formerly Southwestern Bell). The very first thing he did was to sit down and write the book he entitled, “ACROPHOBIA – 1977” about the most outstanding high school basketball team in Kansas’ history, of which he (providentially) was a member. He wrote the book in nine months, working at the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in Newton, where, when he wasn’t showing people around, he had a quiet place to write. At his book-signing on December 10, 2010, many former (and famous) Wichita Heights’ players and coaches returned to Wichita for the event. Acrophobia means “fear of heights,” and Mark’s cleverly- and aptly-named book can easily be found on Amazon.com.

During 2011 and 2012, Mark was busy helping his wife, Judi, in caring for her parents and siblings through seasons of illnesses and death. Not quite ready to completely retire, in 2013 he worked a couple of stints, first at Whole Foods and then at the Old Time Clock Shop – all the while learning and enjoying people – but still searching for something in the communications industry that didn’t involve climbing poles and hanging from wires! In 2014 he saw an ad on the Internet that piqued his interest. After a successful phone interview, followed by a successful personal interview, Mark started his job at SKT on June 2, 2014. He explains, “I was so excited when I saw the town of Clearwater and the SKT building, I said to himself, “I can do that!” He adds, “God blessed me with a full-time job in the telephone industry.”

Anyone who gets to know Mark soon learns that he has amazing memory skills – especially with numbers and dates. He attributes this to 1) memorizing sports/baseball box scores, and 2) after becoming a Christian, memorizing chapters and verses of the Bible. He also enjoys history. An interesting fact is that at the age of 35, Mark sought out and met his birth mother, Pauline Hatfield, and discovered that he is a great-grandson of William Anderson Hatfield (known as Devil Anse Hatfield) of the infamous Hatfield-McCoy feud.

Mark’s not much into possessions, and shares that he could be happy with just a little square room and enough to eat. Someday, he might like to travel – maybe to England, “to see it, meet folks, and learn.” He loves to learn and says, “I keep learning new things all the time – we can all get better.” He believes there are two eternal things: God’s Word and people. Mark finds being involved with people very rewarding. He says, “Through learning God’s Word, you learn to love, comfort, help, and guide people, wherever, whenever – whether it’s through friendship, meeting needs, or just trying to ‘be there.’”

Meet needs. In a nutshell, that’s what Mark Nale endeavors to do – at SKT and in his personal life — all the while smiling, enjoying the company, and sharing life with others.