No one worked harder or fought harder than Mark Bellinger, but the longtime NewsChannel 5 reporter’s fight against cancer has ended.
He passed away peacefully Thursday surrounded by his loving family. Mark Bellinger was 56.
Around the NewsChannel 5 newsroom Mark was affectionately known as the “B” – his specialty was covering crime, but in the story of his life, cancer was the thief which stole time from him.
What most of you didn’t know and what he didn’t want you to know was that the cancer came first in 2013. Mark embodied the word courage. He would have chemotherapy in the morning and report the news in the evenings.
He was strong, he was courageous, and he was a journalist at heart.
Mark first came to NewsChannel 5 from KHQ-TV in Spokane, Washington where he covered the North Idaho beat. He began his career at KIDK-TV in Idaho after graduating from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Never afraid to ask the tough questions, the “B” had a remarkable relationship with nearly every lawmaker at the Capitol. He shined there covering politics, and that is something we’ll never replace.
Mark loved the Titans, loved wearing cowboy boots to work, and loved telling great stories. He also loved his family.
Mark leaves behind his young daughter, Anna, and the love of his life, Cindy, who he was married to for 16 years after the two met on a whim at a Logan’s Roadhouse while Cindy was working as a waitress.
The “B” started his career at NewsChannel 5 in 1993 as a reporter. It’s impossible to count the number of stories he told, the number of live shots he begrudgingly pushed through, or the number of lives he undoubtedly touched in the 23 years he shared with us and viewers at home.
What happened to Mark doesn’t seem fair, but it is fair to say that Mark Bellinger left this place better than he found it.
A gofundme account was setup to help Mark’s family. If you’d like to donate, click here.
Funeral arrangements were set for visitation on Sunday, Oct. 30 from 3 p.m. - 7 p.m. at Williamson Memorial 3009 Columbia Ave. in Franklin.
The funeral was set for Monday, Oct. 31 at the Holy Family Catholic Church at 9100 Crockett Road in Brentwood with visitation from 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. and the funeral immediately after at 11 p.m.
