Mark C. Noble, of Austin, died peacefully November 20, 2011, with his son Jerry by his side. Mark was born in Akron, Ohio, in 1920 and attended school in St. Louis, Missouri. During high school he worked at a pharmacy, where his mentor, "Mr. Zuckerman," encouraged him to go to pharmacy school. Mark, however, had his sights set on becoming a pilot, and when he graduated from high school in 1939, he joined the Army Air Corp, where he became a glider pilot and rose to the rank of lieutenant. Mark's troop, the 435th Troop Carrier Group, was formed on January 30, 1943 and activated on February 25, 1943. They used C-47's, C-53's, Waco, and Horsa gliders in preparing for duty overseas with the 9th Air Force.
Mark was moved to England to begin training for participation in the airborne operations over Normandy. He entered combat in 1944 on D-Day by flying a Waco glider carrying troops. He participated in multiple major glider landings/assaults including several behind German lines. He was sent to the invasion of Southern France where he flew gliders carrying troops into hot combat landing zones. He flew combat missions supplying troops to the campaigns in Northern France, Southern France, Arno, the Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, and Central Europe. He received numerous citations and decorations for his valor, including the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, American Defense Ribbon, American Theater Ribbon, WW II Victory Medal, Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, and Distinguished Unit Citation.
Mark loved the story of when he flew troops into the invasion of Holland. Gliders were made out of wood and canvas and had no propellers. Just the speed of the wind and Mark's skill as a pilot were at hand to land the aircraft full of 13 troops intact. On this day of combat, Mark was looking for the landing zone (LZ). He was at 500' feet above the tree line when machine gun fire began riddling the wooden glider from the trees below. He made a tight bank looking for the LZ when he realized where he needed to land was being heavily hit with enemy mortars. He started looking for an alternate landing area. He needed to land pretty quickly since by this time he was only 200' above the ground. As Mark looked out the cockpit, he saw some brick farmhouses, so he headed toward them. He positioned his glider to land between the houses and barns.

At this point in the flight, the bottom of the glider was hitting the tops of trees. He managed to get past the trees and began to land. As he was landing, the wings of the glider began to plow up wooden fence posts while the glider still had a speed of 100 mph. Mark recalled this as great fun watching fence posts flying through the air. When the glider came to a stop, he dived out of the glider because bullets were flying inside the cockpit from enemy fire. When he hit the ground, he landed on his back with his legs spread apart in a potato patch. Mark looked up to see a Hollander with the Resistance Movement standing over him holding an orange flag. The Hollander stuck out his hand and said, "Welcome! We have been waiting five years for you Americans." When Mark told this story, he always added that he thought this guy was nuts for greeting him with all the enemy bullets flying around.
After the war, Mark was stationed near San Francisco, where at a dance at the Officers' Club, he met Mary Bell Clark, a major in the army. They fell in love, married in San Francisco, and moved to San Antonio, where "Mary B." was an anesthesiology instructor at Brooke Army Medical Center. Soon they moved to Austin, where Mark fulfilled "Mr. Zuckerman's" dream for him by attending pharmacy school at the University of Texas College of Pharmacy, while Mary B. worked at Brackenridge Hospital as Chief Nurse Anesthetist.
When Mark graduated, he went to work at Brackenridge Hospital as a pharmacist and later became Director of Pharmacy and established and operated the Poison Control Center. He and Mary B. both were on call the day of the Charles Whitman shootings at the UT tower. They both worked tirelessly that day to save many of the shooting victims. Mark loved pharmacy and did everything he could to promote the profession, including serving as president of the Texas Society of Hospital Pharmacists and as an adjunct clinical instructor at UT. He was instrumental in the establishment of Austin's first free out-patient medical clinic. In 2010 he received a citation of achievement from the Texas Board of Pharmacy for 50 years as a licensed pharmacist.
After retirement, Mark enjoyed walking the neighborhood and making friends with his younger neighbors, one of whom deemed him the Elder Statesman of Travis Heights. He also enjoyed Lawrence Welk, the music of Benny Goodman, and dogsitting his granddogs. In his later years, Mark resided at the Summit at Westlake where he easily made new friends and embraced the staff as family. Mark will be remembered as a dedicated professional and a true gentleman who was gracious and grateful to all.
Mark is survived by his son Jerry Noble and daughter-in-law Jane Noble of West Lake Hills. The family suggests memorial donations be sent to the Austin Humane Society, 124 Anderson Lane, Austin, Texas, 78752. The family would like to thank the Summit staff, Dr. Teresa Albright, Heart to Heart Hospice, and the Rev. Dr. Carla Cheatham for the unmatched love and care they gave to Mark.
Come join the family for visitation and a light lunch beginning at 12:30 on Tuesday, November 29th in the Hospitality Room at Weed-Corley-Fish Lake Travis, 411 Ranch Road 620 South. Funeral services will follow at 1:30 in the chapel. Interment will follow at Forest Oaks Memorial Park in Oak Hill.