Remembering Mark Weidner

Published: January 22, 2026

Dec. 3, 1942 – Sept. 27, 2025

Mark LeRoy Weidner, DMin, a longtime pastor and church leader from Lititz, Pennsylvania, died on Sept. 27, 2025, at age 82. He served as Vice President for Advancement and Administration of Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS — now Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) from 1998 to 2004.

Mark is warmly remembered for his pastoral presence and care for others, his wisdom and insight as a leader, and his commitment to the church.

“Mark’s work was always rooted in a deep love for the church,” reflected David Boshart, PhD, AMBS President, who served on the AMBS Board of Directors while Mark was Vice President in the 2000s. “At the core of his call in his own ministry lay the profound conviction that the work of seminaries is essential to the flourishing of the church. He believed in AMBS’s mission to call and nurture leaders who would serve God’s people.”

Mark came to AMBS with extensive experience as a pastor and conference leader. Following his graduation from AMBS with a Master of Divinity in 1973, he pastored a church plant — Cincinnati (Ohio) Mennonite Fellowship (1973–80) — and then served as Conference Minister (1980–98), first for the Central District of the General Conference Mennonite Church and then for the Ohio Conference of the Mennonite Church. He also earned a Doctor of Ministry in Leadership Development from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. 

“Mark brought tremendous gifts to his work at AMBS: extensive networks of relationships from his work as a conference minister and congregational pastor; personal warmth and a pastoral presence that made everyone feel welcomed and valued; and a deep trust in God’s leading and provision,” said Janeen Bertsche Johnson, MDiv, DMin candidate, AMBS Campus Pastor, Admissions Associate and Alumni Director.

While at AMBS, Mark successfully led the $20.4 million Next Generation campaign, which began in 2001 and raised funds for the AMBS Library, Annual Fund, student scholarships, faculty endowments and various leadership development programs. He began the Alumni Ministry and Service Recognition in 2004 to share about how AMBS alumni were serving the church and world.

In 2002, Mark secured the Wadsworth Bell from the City of Wadsworth, Ohio, for AMBS, and it was installed outside of the seminary’s Chapel of the Sermon on the Mount. The bell originally hung in the tower of the Wadsworth Institute, the first Mennonite institution of higher learning in North America, which prepared pastors and teachers for the church. (The bell was tolled in remembrance for the first time for Mark’s first wife, Susan Weidner, in December 2004.)

In September 2004, Mark accepted a call to serve half time on the pastoral team of Perkasie (Pennsylvania) Mennonite Church. He continued to serve AMBS half time, raising funds for the Next Generation campaign and meeting with donors and prospective students in the east.

When they moved to Pennsylvania, Mark and Susan sold their house to AMBS to be a guesthouse. AMBS Professor Emeritus Cornelius J. Dyck and his wife, Wilma, had built it adjacent to the AMBS campus in 1966, and the Weidners had bought it from them in 1998. Now known as the C.J. and Wilma Dyck Guesthouse, it is regularly used to host guests for campus programs and events.

David affirmed how Mark expressed the love of Jesus to those around him.

“As a leader, he modeled humility and grace,” he said. “He was known for his careful listening, taking time to truly hear the concerns and hopes of everyone from students to major donors. This skill enabled him to excel at building bridges across our constituency, strengthening the bonds between AMBS and the many communities we serve.”

Mark loved the church and generously gave his time to serve it, Janeen noted. He chaired the committee that planned for the integration of the four Mennonite conferences in the Great Lakes area; served on Bluffton (Ohio) University’s Board of Trustees, including as Vice Chair; held a part-time volunteer role as Senior Advisor for Church Relations with Bluffton University; held several interim ministry roles; and chaired Mennonite Church USA’s Leadership Discernment Committee; among other roles.

Bob Yoder, DMin, CFRM, CFRL, CPGM, Director of Development, attended Mark’s Oct. 11 memorial service at Akron (Pennsylvania) Mennonite Church on behalf of AMBS.

“I appreciated Mark’s big, gracious smile both during my time as a student at AMBS — when he served in the role I now hold — and in recent years as I reconnected with him and Kay [Weidner, Mark’s second wife],” he said. “When I was a student, Mark would occasionally ask how my studies were going, and after I graduated, whenever we crossed paths at conferences, he would check in again. I’m grateful for his faithful support of AMBS and his extraordinary legacy.”

— Annette Brill Bergstresser, AMBS

Obituary
Mark LeRoy Weidner
Dec. 3, 1942 – Sept. 27, 2025

Mark LeRoy Weidner, 82, lived an extraordinary life because he was an extraordinary man. He lived through many beautiful chapters and passed away peacefully beside his family on Sept. 27, 2025, in Lititz, Pennsylvania. He had a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease. 

He was born the second of four children in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to LeRoy and Viola Weidner. He met his future wife, Susan, in the church nursery at First Mennonite of Allentown. He started out his career in engineering by working for Xerox in Rochester, New York, in its early days. After serving with Mennonite Central Committee in Vietnam during the war, he left his engineering career when the Kent State shootings called him to take a new path into ministry. 

He received a Master of Divinity from Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) and a Doctor of Ministry from United Theological Seminary. This calling led him to many Mennonite institutions, including planting a church in Cincinnati and serving as Central District Conference Minister, Ohio Conference Minister, Vice President at AMBS and Pastor at Perkasie (Pennsylvania) Mennonite Church. Mark also served on the Bluffton (Ohio) University Board of Trustees for more than 20 years.

Mark was a beloved brother, husband, father and grandpa. He loved a good joke, a hot cup of coffee and a homemade meal. Throughout his life he put his beliefs into action and was always a kind and generous man. 

He is survived by his wife, Kay; his four children, Lisa Adams (Scott), Beky Weidner (Larry Penner), Tim Weidner (Elaine Esch) and Elizabeth Weidner (Alejandro Sanchez); his stepdaughters, Sharon Landis (Jeff) and Suzanne Marie Fransen Hitt (Steve); and his siblings, Marilynn Strayer, Lois Marshall and Joel Weidner. Mark was the proud Papa to 11 grandchildren: Grace, Erin, Hannah, Kate, Zach, Julia, Sydney, Alison, Lindsay, Emma and Camila. He was preceded in death by his first wife of 40 years, Susan McElwain (d. 2004).

A Celebration of Life Ceremony will be held at Akron Mennonite Church on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, at 4 p.m. A receiving line will precede the service at 3 p.m. Dinner to follow at the church. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Mennonite Central Committee.

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