Mark McTamney
Mark McTamney owns The English Bug, a small school in Fujinomiya. The meaning of the school’s name can aptly be applied to Mark as well! Why, you ask? The school was named by its original owner after a Japanese saying, “…shigoto no mushi…” Translated, the message is that if you work hard like an insect you will reach your goal. Mark’s volunteerism with the Tyler Foundation embodies this ideal. His solid dedication to getting the job done for the Tyler Foundation is why Mark McTamney is our June Stellar Volunteer!
Mark was one of the men, who on the night of the memorial for Tyler, came up with the idea of the first event and since then has been involved in all the Tyler Foundation events to varying degrees. Mark Ferris said, “Mark has helped us from the inception of the Tyler Foundation and has made a huge contribution. He’s taken on some significant tasks over the past four years and the outcome has always been excellent.” Mark doesn’t have the same job every year. He likes to mix it up! “I get thrown into something different every year and I quite enjoy that. One of the highlights was a car ride with Barry Richards, one of the greatest cricket batsmen in the history of the game. My father almost had a heart attack when I called him to tell him I had just dropped Richards off at the airport. I ran him out to the airport – just him and I…just talking like two mates. What a great experience!”
When Mark talks about the Tyler Foundation his words brim with sincerity. “You always feel like you want to contribute…it has given me a helluva lot more than I could ever give the Foundation.” Mark noted that over the years of his involvement, “…there’s always a new volunteer for me to meet. The Foundation has given me the platform to meet people that I would never ever have had (like Richards). I have had the opportunity to socialize, talk to, and hob-knob with CEO’s, sports celebrities, and others…” But, we believe that the same is true of him! Mark’s support of the Tyler Foundation makes him a celebrity in his own right.
“I used to be heavily involved in cricket – that’s how I got to know Mark Ferris.” Mark became really good friends with the Ferris’ just before Tyler was born. “Mark and Kim are wonderful people…great leaders for the Foundation. Kim’s speech at the first event really hit home for me. When I’m having a bit of a rough day and I think things aren’t going so well for me…I think back on that speech and I think things aren’t so bad.” In reflecting on the very beginning of the Foundation and on how its grown Mark noted, “There was a turning point after the first few months. We were sitting around trying to figure out the cricket match and it was mushrooming – we realized that we were a few months out and we needed more volunteers. …we found suddenly we had to be very professional – run like a corporation….but we have so much fun in the meantime! I think that’s one of the reasons we’ve been successful. We weren’t planning for it to be this big and to see where it’s gone, it makes you proud. Extremely.” Mark encourages others to be involved. “If you’re sitting there thinking, what can I do? How can I give back to the community….My advice would be there are so many ways to contribute, just contact us! We’ll find a way. Mark summed up volunteering for the Tyler Foundation by recalling the actions of one person who has made a difference - Steve Parsons. “Steve was out one night and decided, on a whim, that he would do the Tokyo Marathon. He didn’t have a history of running, in fact, he detested running. But he said I’ll give it a try and do something for the Foundation. He went out and got thousands of yen in pledges by himself. This was a fabulous donation! And for me this encapsulates the whole thing – the more people we have like Steve the stronger we’re going to be.”
Mark is a man with a great sense of humor! If you are lucky enough to make his acquaintance, you just won’t be able to help but feel good after you’ve talked to him. Ferris noted, “His people skills are second to none which makes him a pleasure to be around… even the day after a long night of Foundation planning meetings!” The native New Zealander, who stopped off in Japan for three months in 1995 on his way to England, never made it! Fourteen years later, he owns a school, is married to Sayaka and has two children Abby, 5 and Alayna 4. All this from a guy who had never been on a plane before landing in Japan! In his spare time, he loves sitting on the deck of the house he just finished building in April with a new barbeque taking it all in. We think you deserve some needed rest to get ready for the casino activities you are heading up for the Fall event! We want you strong to continue to be our Stellar Volunteer! Thanks Mark McTamney!